If You Think I Want You, Think Again
by dreamgurl
Summary: A month after "Much I Do About Nothing." S invites B to the Hamptons to get over C. N invites C to get over B. Instead, all four are thrust together in awkwardness and summer fun. CB and some NS.
1. Friends Don't Let Friends Be Emo

**If You Think I Want You, Think Again**

Summary: Takes place a month after "Much I Do About Nothing." Serena and Nate separately convince Blair and Chuck to come to the Hamptons for the rest of the summer. Mainly CB with some definite leaning in the NS direction. More than anything, I guess it's CBNS :)

**Ch 1: Friends Don't Let Friends Be Emo **

Serena Van der Woodsen rolled her eyes good-naturedly as she participated in the umpteenth "Chuck hasn't called yet" conversation that summer. It had already been a month since Chuck left Blair stranded in Italy, yet these conversations had been taking place at least once a day. **At least**. If Blair Waldorf, her best friend, kept this up, Serena would just have to fly to France and kill them both with her bare hands.

"—Just who does he think he is?" Blair was asking vehemently. "I give him a chance, you know, and he just throws it in my face! If he thinks I'm even so much as looking in his direction the next time we meet, he's got another thing coming—"

Serena took this as her opportunity to play matchmaker once more, though she had no idea why she would even consider it, since she had never been a big proponent of 'Chuck plus Blair 4eva' in the first place. But she had to admit that one week where they were carefree and together had been the happiest she had ever seen Blair, so she was prepared to do almost anything to make it happen again. "Must I remind you, B," she chided her friend lightly, "That **you** were the one who turned him away when he flew all the way to your father's chateau just to speak with you?"

She heard Blair's grumbling on the other line. Was she really going to deny that she didn't even give Chuck the opportunity to explain himself? As angry as Serena would have been in her place, she would have let Dan explain if he apologized. Not that Dan ever apologized… _Stop thinking about him!_ She almost slapped herself, knowing that's what Blair would do if she could hear Serena's thoughts right now. "What was I _supposed_ to do, S?" Blair nearly whined, "I have **some** self-respect, you know." _Ouch_. Serena was pretty sure she herself didn't have any, then.

"Okay, here's what we're going to do," Serena began in a gushing tone, "You're going to leave your dad's tomorrow morning—you guys have had enough of each other by now, I swear—and you're going to come party it up in the Hamptons with me!" She giggled to punctuate her excitement. It was time her best friend was back by her side, she didn't care if that was a little bit selfish. They were both suffering from broken hearts, although Serena was sure Blair's was less hurt and more easily fixable than her own, and could definitely use each other's company. "You'll forget all about, ugh, _my step brother_, when you see all the totally gorgeous guys I'm surrounded by constantly." Well, the gorgeous guys and Nate Archibald…. But it was best to leave him out of the picture for now, even if Blair was supposedly over him. Serena and Nate had been hanging out a lot over the summer, and she wasn't entirely sure how okay it was for her to be friends with Blair's ex. When they saw each other again in the Hamptons, though, she was sure everyone would get along and they could all be best friends once more.

Blair looked around her very own room in her father's French cottage and gave a little sigh. She had exhausted all of the tourist activities in France. As much as she loved her father and her cat, and Roman, too—he kept trying to get her to work in the vineyard, and she was afraid that she would crack and give in if she stayed another day. Overall, the summer had been a bust so far. There were a bunch of adorable _garçons_ vying for her attention, but she hadn't been able to pay adequate attention to any of them. None of them were scarf-wearing, self-absorbed, pseudo-reformed bad boys, so how could they possibly hold her interest? Okay, that was a lie. Some of them **did** wear scarves, were self-obsessed, and had promised to change their lifestyles to suit her mood… but none of them were Chuck Bass. And that was a fact. It was unfortunate that she had let the movie in her head get the best of her once again; she should have known Chuck wouldn't want a real relationship, no matter what he had said at Lily's wedding. She just wished he could have been man enough to admit it to her instead of lying and sneaking around and humiliating her in front of his father's employees by leaving her all alone at the helipad. Finally, she snapped out of her gloomy thoughts and remembered she was on the line with Serena. "I guess I could use a little New York sun," she conceded. It would be good to spend time with her only real friend and make sure she didn't get into any trouble. Blair always forgot about her own problems when she was focusing on Serena's.

* * *

"Come on, man. Join me, please. I'm dying here with only Serena as company," Nate pleaded jokingly into the phone as he spoke with his newly reinstated best friend, Chuck Bass. It was a lie that Serena's company was anything less than spectacular, but Nate thought it would be a good way to simultaneously convince Chuck to come and remind himself that Serena was nothing more than a good friend. Besides, he knew Chuck needed some relief. He hadn't really talked about what happened with Blair all summer long, but from what Nate could gather from Serena—it hadn't been pretty.

"I don't know, Nathaniel," Chuck resisted on the other line, "You know how I feel about my luxuriously pale complexion. I'm afraid the harsh Hampton sun will mess it up for me." He stretched himself out on his king-sized bed in his father's Monaco hotel and racked his brains for another reason to skip out on all the fun. "Besides, French girls are _way_ hotter. You should come here instead."

Nate shook his head and almost laughed at his friend's lame excuses. "No way, man. We already did Monaco. It's time for me to take _you_ on a vacation." Fearing he was making little progress, Nate decided to go in for the kill instead. "…You'll be further from Blair this way," he said cautiously.

Chuck scoffed, "Like I care where Blair is. I don't need some _girl_ in my life trying to control me and making me feel guilty for every little thing I do. I'm not **you**, Nathaniel." Of course, he had to admit that for the week he had been with Blair, there had been nothing controlling or stifling about it. She had been totally loose and free and happy, and he had thought he would never feel so blessed again. Then his dad had made him see he really _wouldn't_. Sooner or later, she would turn into Blair Waldorf again and he would have to mold himself into her perfect high society boytoy or lose her forever. It was better if he pulled away before getting too attached, right? Definitely right. If he had gone on that trip with her, everything would have fallen to pieces (not that it didn't, anyway). He didn't regret anything he did, ever. He was Chuck Bass, after all. _Yeah, but if you didn't regret it,_ the annoying voice in his head wondered, _Why did you go after her and apologize? _Now there was something to think about.

"That really hurt, Chuck!" Nate pretended to fall over with an arrow through the heart. "Are you really telling me that you and I momentarily broke up our eternal bromance because of your love for Blair, and now she means nothing to you?" He had momentarily considered getting angry at Chuck all over again when he first heard about the immature way he was treating Blair, but now that he had his best buddy back—he knew that there was practically nothing that could make him let Chuck go a second time.

"I'm afraid that exactly what I'm saying, Nathaniel," Chuck agreed quickly, although he wanted to kick himself for being so cruel when he knew he'd much rather have Blair back by his side than be partying it up in Monaco. "I can't be tied down. I was a fool to kid myself like that. Chuck Bass has to spread the love."

Nate rolled his eyes at all the bravado, knowing he sometimes wished he himself could get away with it. However, now it was just starting to grate, seeing as it was so obvious Chuck didn't mean a word of it. "If you're so intent on 'spreading the love,' how is it that you haven't been with a single girl since Blair?" At this, he almost shuddered, aware that he meant the **first time** with Blair. A first time that Nate hadn't known about for months and that, incidentally, should have been _her_ first time with _him_. But Nate was the kind of guy who let bygones be bygones, so he shook off his ill feeling a second after it appeared.

"How would you even know that? I could have two girls with me right now."

"Do you?"

Chuck let a few seconds go by without answering. He really wished he had two girls with him right now, just to prove Nate wrong. _And because they would be really hot, and I'm really horny_, he reminded himself. But, sadly, he only really wanted to be with Blair—no matter how many girls he convinced himself he could now sleep with guilt-free.

* * *

He hadn't even been able to hook up with that interior decorator chick. What was her name? Anna? Whatever. He had led her into his suite and then realized how ridiculous he was being. Wasn't flirting enough? Even though Blair hadn't exactly declared her undying love for him yet, he knew that anything more would hurt her. While that revelation had surprised him, what surprised him even more was that hurting her was the last thing he wanted to do. In fact, just in that moment, he had realized the lengths he would go to in order to **not** hurt Blair. So he had immediately started actually talking about designs for his room, totally weirding the hell out of what's-her-face. Which, hello? That was her _job_, so he had no idea what her problem was. Then he had booked a commercial flight to Tuscany and ended up getting there a day late. He made the mistake of not telling Blair when he was leaving, though, so of course the minute he stepped off the plane, a text arrived from Blair herself: **Bored. Going to dad's. B.** That had been the first time Chuck actually felt any sort of panic about the situation. No XOs, no flirting. She was clearly pissed and he was going to pay. He couldn't even understand why she was so angry; she had to know it would be hard to find a commercial flight to Tuscany on such short notice.

So then he had gone from Tuscany to her father's chateau in the French countryside without skipping a beat, especially when he heard from the staff at the hotel they would have been staying at that a young Bass employee named Ben had escorted Blair on the flight to her father's. A terrible sense of debutante ball déjà vu had overcome him, and he determined to find Blair before she thought it would be a good idea to sleep with someone else just to express her anger. When he finally arrived at the cottage, however, she did not answer the door. He called her from outside and she picked up, her voice coming clearly from the other side of the door—which was utterly ridiculous and such a Blair thing to do that Chuck couldn't help but laugh. That didn't go over well with her.

"Please open the door, B. I'm sorry I was late, okay?"

Her voice had been brittle and cold when she responded. "You really think I'm that petty, huh? You think I'm angry because you were a couple of hours late to meet me?"

Chuck had felt his stomach drop just then. "What the hell are you talking about?" She couldn't possibly know about the girl… especially since there was nothing **to** know, now that Chuck had realized he was the biggest pansy this side of the Hudson.

"Since Gossip Girl hates me so much," she spat out, "She didn't miss the opportunity to inform me of your little _tryst_ with some girl named Amelia."

So **that** was her name. But how in the world would Gossip Girl have gotten that information. Bitch was crazy, that was for sure. She either had to have hotel spies or someone had video access to his suite. "Huh? Nothing happened, Blair, I swear!" He had explained immediately, glad he was going to be able to get it all out in the open. Maybe they could even sit down and have a heart-to-heart in which she would assure him she never wanted him to change and that Bart was crazy for even suggesting it. That would be much easier to do if she would just open the door. "She's my decorator, we were talking about plans for my room in the new apartment."

He could hear Blair start to choke up on the other end of the phone (and the other side of the door) and had felt like the biggest jerk of all time. How was he supposed to make her feel better if he couldn't hold her in his arms? And why couldn't she just believe him, anyway? "Spare me your excuses, Chuck," she finally said, when she had regained control of her voice. "I always knew you were heartless, but I didn't think you would ever lie to my face." _Technically, it's not your face_, he thought, but now was not the time for snark. "I can't believe I trusted you. Please leave." She had said this last part with all the calm in the world.

She was so calm that Chuck could almost have believed she didn't care. But he had heard her sob before, and he knew he wasn't going to win unless he made her understand exactly what was happening. "Okay, Blair, I panicked about the trip and that's why I was late. I'm sorry I lied about my dad, but I promise you that Amelia and I—"

And that was all he ever got out, because just then he heard the phone click off and Blair scream, "LEAVE!" with such force that he was instead rooted to the spot out of both fear and guilt.

The door opened and he thought about running like the wind, away from Blair Waldorf's sharp claws, but it was thankfully Blair's father who walked out instead. "Sir, please let Blair know—"

But even Harold hadn't cared to hear what Chuck had to say, and he just said as grimly as possible, "I think it's best you go, Charles. You're disturbing Cat."

* * *

Now he didn't even know if Blair was hooking up with that Ben guy or with one of the many French suitors she must have acquired over the course of the month. And here **he** was, having gotten exactly what he wanted by no longer having to be a one-woman man. And yet all he wanted was to have that one woman again. _Thanks a lot, karma. _Or Gods of Irony, whatever.He shook off all the flashbacks running through his head and went back to his conversation. As much as he wanted to say something about tapping that ass, he couldn't lie, so he just answered Nate with a defeated "…No."

"You can't see me right now, but I'm doing a victory dance," Nate said, gloating a little more than necessary. "Since you're not having wild, crazy sex with hotel employees, I suggest you get your sexy self down to the Hamptons ASAP." And with that, he hung up to go ask the staff to set up a room for Chuck.


	2. When Your Eyes Say It

**If You Think I Want You, Think Again  
**Summary: Nate and Serena make plans to ensure some CB interaction; Chuck and Blair arrive and are greeted by a small surprise…

**Ch. 2: When Your Eyes Say It**

Nate and Serena met up at their usual spot by Tiana Beach, ready to soak up the sun but not quite ready to share their news with each other. Even though Nate and Chuck had more than made up, Serena wasn't sure how Nate felt about Blair. Nate, meanwhile, didn't know if having her step brother sleazing around her (as he most certainly would to do in order to prove just how macho he was) would ruin Serena's summer. After discussing banal things like the weather and which reality TV star Maya happened to have hooked up with **this** week, they both took a deep breath and made their announcements at the same time:

"Chuck's going to be here tomorrow," Nate blurted out just as Serena lamented, "Blair's coming in the morning."

They both looked at each other in surprise for a brief moment before they burst out in a fit of uncontrollable giggles. Unable to catch her breath, Serena collapsed onto the sand, bringing Nate down with her to cushion her fall. Finding herself on top of him while he was clad only in swim trunks, her muscles tensed ever so slightly and she quickly extracted herself from the situation. Nate's own laughter had cut itself off the second they hit the ground, so she knew he sensed the awkwardness, too. _Thank God Blair's not here yet, because she would __**kill**__ me. _She desperately searched her head for something to break the tension, finally coming out with, "Great minds think alike, I guess." Seeing Nate nod eagerly while dusting himself off, she immediately felt more at ease.

"We're either very awesome, or very, **very** stupid," Nate agreed.

"Well, as long as total global destruction is our goal, we are definitely the former because this is the surest way to start World War 3."

Nate laughed, helping Serena to her feet and nudging her in the direction of a beachside bar. He was definitely going to need a drink after that little stunt. He hated to admit it to himself, but he would do anything to keep physical contact with her, no matter how many times she avoided his touch. He didn't know why he was so stupid; nothing seemed to get through that thick skull of his. He had been repeating the same mantra in his head for the past month: _Serena is your friend and is merely interacting with you in a friendly manner_, but somehow his body did not seem to agree with him. Every accidental graze of her skin reminded him of their one night together—that one night so special to him, which Serena seemed to want to forget at all costs. Was he really born so beautiful just so he could be the unluckiest guy ever when it came to love? Were his charm and good looks all for naught?

Even if Serena **did** ever want him, it would be the most doomed relationship ever. She was clearly still not over Dan (and maybe she never would be, he thought glumly). And Blair was not the sort of laid-back, happy-go-lucky person who could just let something like that go—especially not now that she was on the outs with Chuck. Plus, it would be even worse if Chuck and Blair were together because Blair would be territorial and possessive anyway, something which Chuck would mistake for jealousy—thus sending his best friend into a downward spiral of insecurity, rage, and possible blackmail. It never ceased to surprise Nate that the one thing that he wanted to do at any given time would always be the very thing guaranteed to hurt every person he loved. And yet none of these things would matter to him if he could only be certain Serena had some lingering feelings for him somewhere. She had to have felt something at some point, right? He refused to believe it had just been Serena being her carefree, selfish, gorgeous self. Even drunk off her ass, she would never have hurt Blair like that.

_If you don't shut up, brain, I'm going to stab you._ His brain was a coward who gave up in the face of semi-true love, so of course it obeyed. He turned his attention to the problem at hand, and pulled out an imaginary checklist from his shorts. "Let's see here…" He pretended to think. "A happy Chuck and Blair means happiness for us all, so how can we make this work?"

Serena smiled at his silliness and stroked her chin as if she were a very wise old man with a beard. "Did Chuck cheat on Blair?" She thought she knew the answer and she wasn't so sure she wanted it to hear it spoken out loud, but she had to know the truth if they were going to do anything about the situation.

Nate perused his invisible paper, searching for the response supposedly written there. "Aha!" He exclaimed, pointing to a random spot in the air. "My sources say no."

Serena tried not to let the surprise register on her face; she didn't want to be accused of not having faith in her own pseudo-family members. Suddenly she was filled with a surge of commitment to the project. If Chuck hadn't cheated, Blair didn't have a real issue to deal with here. She almost jumped up with excitement when Nate pulled her back down to Earth.

"Will Blair believe us if we tell her he didn't cheat?" He asked her, with a look that already gave away the answer.

"Ugh, **no**," Serena moaned. Of _course _Blair had trust issues. Her boyfriend had cheated on her with her best friend and lied about it for half a year. Serena had wanted to go back in time and fix that moment ever since it happened, but right now the magnitude of her mistake was hitting her pretty hard. Besides, a text from Gossip Girl was as good as the truth in their world, and there had been a picture of Chuck and blondie to boot.

Well, there it was. The jig was up and Nate was stumped. He shrugged his shoulders in defeat and sighed. "Looks like we're screwed," he mumbled.

Serena shoved him playfully. "Come on, mister! We've got two gorgeous dumb heads here. We have to add up to at least one normal smart person, right? We can definitely do better than that."

Nate took fake-offence at that comment. "I got a 2000 on my SATs, I'll have you know. Who's the dumb blonde now, huh?"

That shut her up, since her SAT score was still in adolescent figures, but now they had more important things to discuss.

* * *

Chuck arrived at the picturesque, 7500 square-foot Archibald residence in the Hamptons at around noon the next day. It had been newly renovated and even _he_ was impressed. Anne Archibald had a refined taste in architecture that was probably only rivaled by Chuck's step mother, Lily. Coming up closer, though, he noticed something seemed off with the decorative garden in front of the house. Flowers were strewn about the yard, having clearly been yanked from their comfortable homes in the ground. It looked as if a tornado might have struck the night before. But he was not one to criticize. Nate had probably just gotten a little too riled up while playing a mean game of lacrosse with his buddies. When the door opened to let him in, he dropped his stuff off with the nearest butler and called out, "Nathaniel, get up and get this party started!"

Surprisingly, Nate was not in bed (it was beyond Chuck how anyone could wake up before noon unless it was absolutely necessary), and instead came to welcome his friend from the kitchen area. "Hey, man, I'm so sorry about this," was his greeting.

_Strange first words_, Chuck thought, furrowing his brow. "Sorry about what? Sure, I'm a little offended your lifestyle is more active than mine, but I always knew there was a secret to your perfect figure."

Nate smiled to acknowledge the sarcastic compliment, but quickly plowed ahead with his original thought process. If he got distracted for too long, he was pretty sure he would forget what he was supposed to be saying. "I don't know what to do, Chuck. Looks like someone totally vandalized the garden or something last night. Now my mom's freaking out about calling the landscaper and saying stuff about how it's 'unacceptable to have guests over when the house is in this condition.' I'm really sorry you came all the way out here, when now it looks like we're going to have to go back to Monaco, anyway…" He hoped Chuck would get where he was going with this, because it would look pretty stupid to change tactics now.

Chuck thought about the dilemma for a second, feeling a little too lazy to hop right back on a plane. He had already searched for a replacement girl in Monaco, anyway, and failed miserably. It was definitely time for a change of setting. "I've got it," he announced. "My beautiful sister is staying in the area, is she not? I'm sure she'd be more than happy to oblige us for a week or two." He pulled out his phone to make a quick call to Lily, just so Serena wouldn't be able to say no if she wanted to. It really paid to be on good terms with his step mother. He never got over how well Lily seemed to think of him. It almost made him want to live up to her idea of the person he was. **Almost**.

A short and sweet conversation with Lily set all the plans in stone. Chuck and Nate would stay in an upstairs bedroom in the Van der Woodsen summer residence and the Archibald servants would take care of sending all the luggage over. Nate visibly breathed a sigh of relief, unable to believe he had just pulled one over Chuck. This was most certainly a story to tell his grandchildren.

Just before hanging up, Lily decided to poke a little fun at her step son, seeing as she and Bart were still so proud of his having settled into a real relationship. "Now I want no funny business, Charles. Do you understand me?" She teased him, "Just because Blair's your girlfriend now doesn't mean it's okay for you to be cavorting with her after hours."

"Your wish is my command," Chuck assented, but inside he was reeling with confusion. After closing his phone, he turned to Nate suspiciously and asked, "Blair's not here, is she?"

Nate resisted the urge to gulp and instead swatted the air with his hand. "No way, man. She's still stomping grapes up in Nice or whatever. You know how little attention Lily pays to what Serena's doing."

Chuck decided to take Nate's word for it. It's not like he would lie; he didn't have the constitution for it. Grabbing a towel and some sunscreen from the nearest closet (always good to have those handy when you own a Hamptons beach house), he declared, "I hope you're ready, Nathaniel, because it's time to go get me a sunburn." Nate quickly pulled out some supplies for himself, Chuck got his sunglasses out of the suitcase, and they were on their way.

* * *

Upon reaching Nate's preferred beach location, Chuck staked out their spot and began scanning the area for potential conquests._ Too fat, too thin, too tall, too short, too many freckles…_ No girl, no matter how perfect, was ever going to measure up. Clearly, he was doomed to remain celibate for the rest of his life. Just as he was beginning to wallow in thoughts of a summer with only Nathaniel for comfort, his eyes fell upon an enchanting figure lying on the ground. It was a gorgeous, petite brunette stretched out on a blue towel at the far end of the beach. _Maybe the summer won't be such a waste after all_, he smirked to himself as he appraised her beauty from afar. Chocolate curls, delicate features he couldn't quite make out but could certainly imagine, perfectly toned stomach, red polka-dot string bikini, huge Audrey Hepburn sunglasses… Just then, Serena came running up to the brunette, accidentally sprinkling her with saltwater from her luxurious, blonde hair.

"I'm going to kill you, S!" The girl screamed, setting down the copy of **New York Magazine** she had been reading. "I told you, today is about tanning only. That means NO water."

She took off her sunglasses to wipe off the offending liquid, and Chuck almost fell over from the shock. It was Blair. Obviously. He turned angrily and kicked some sand in Nate's direction.

"Geez! What's your problem?" Nate cried, protecting his face from the shower of light brown specks.

"I hate you so much right now," Chuck huffed, "You _knew_ she was here, you asshole."

Nate tried and failed to cover his smile, so he got up to avoid any more sandstorms. "Sorry about that, man. Serena and I just thought it would be good if you two… **talked **or something."

Chuck made a face, feeling slightly betrayed by his own family, but he didn't have time to think about that right now. "She's just going to bite my head off, what's the point?" His mind was overpowered by images of Blair biting various parts of his body and he unconsciously shivered. _Get a grip, loser. _He stole a quick glance back at Blair laughing with Serena and immediately looked away with a scowl. "I can't do this!" He complained to his friend, "I mean, _look_ at her. She's wearing an effing bikini."

_Wow, way to make it awkward_. Nate decided to roll with it and obliged Chuck's request, pretending to give Blair a thorough once-over. "You're right, man," he began in his best imitation of his manwhore of a best friend, "She looks _effing_ hot. I will so tap that if you continue to refuse—"

His effusions were cut short by a hard shove from Chuck that landed him face-down in the sand. "What the hell do you think you're doing, Nathaniel?" Chuck barked, "Stop looking at her."

Nate did not comment on the hypocrisy of that statement as he rubbed his shoulder tenderly. Why was he always so abused? "I'm just saying that you can't have it both ways. Either Blair's all yours or she's fair game. Are you really going to be a pussy and run away to Monaco again, or will you take advantage of the situation God and I have endeavored to place in your hands? Please just go and win back your woman."

Chuck stared at Nate for what seemed like an eternity, trying to process the fact that he had just received his first pep-talk ever. Apparently Nate had some tricks up his sleeve, after all. Finally, he nodded and let his friend lead the way to the girls of their dreams.

* * *

Blair saw Nate making his way towards them first and let out a groan of disgust before turning to Serena. "Ugh, S. You didn't tell me _he_ would be here." She rolled her eyes, but didn't feel as annoyed as she thought she would. And certainly not as annoyed as she felt when she saw the boy behind him. "No. No, no, no… NO!" She scrambled to get up with as much poise as she could manage in order to escape from Chuck's view, but Serena held her in place with her strong arms.

"Stay right where you are, B. You **have** to talk to him," Serena scolded her while giving the boys a bright smile and a cute wave.

Nate approached the girls cautiously and explained his sob story to them as best he could, but he was having difficulty not laughing due to Serena's crazy shifting eyes. It all seemed to be going to waste, anyway, since Blair was clearly too busy shooting imaginary daggers at Chuck to even pay attention to him. A silence fell over the group once Nate had finished, and Serena and he entertained themselves momentarily by soaking up the palpable tension between their two closest friends. Chuck broke the staring contest by turning his glare into a wink and sending Blair an almost imperceptible air-kiss, causing her to storm off in frustration. Serena gave Chuck a tiny scoff before going to smooth things over with her friend.

"I can't believe you, S," Blair exploded when Serena caught up with her, "How can you be so oblivious? You're letting them **stay with us**?!" She bit her lip when she felt Serena's comforting hands patting her shoulders. "I'm just going to have to go back to my dad's."

"No!" Serena replied as sharply as she could, "How many times do I have to remind you? You are Blair Waldorf. Chuck is merely a little boy, powerless before you. Just look that devil spawn in the eyes and say 'I don't want you.' Don't let him ruin your fun. If Dan were here, I would **relish** the opportunity to show off new boy toys and let him know just how over his petty judgments I am."

Blair smiled a little at this declaration. "A) You will _never_ be over his petty judgments. You live for them. B) You wouldn't do that. You're too 'nice,' remember?"

Serena conceded the point. "Yeah, but **you're** not. Go and show him who's boss." And with that, she lightly shoved Blair back in Chuck's direction.

Blair took a deep breath and, ignoring Nate entirely, sauntered up to Chuck as sexily as she could. As she was about to make her way past him in order to exit gracefully stage left, he grabbed her arm and pulled her in close.

"If I didn't know better," he whispered hotly in her ear, "I'd say you weren't happy to see me, Waldorf."

She pointedly lowered her gaze to his swim trunks and then arched a perfectly plucked eyebrow. "I'd definitely say _you're_ the one who's happy to see **me**, Bass." Even though her clipped words were perfectly composed, she herself felt anything but, especially when she caught sight of that knowing grin he was giving her. Wrenching her arm away, she spoke with exacting enunciation, hoping that would make the words all the more real: "I don't want you, so just get out of my way." Did that sound weird? She thought it might have, but didn't let it show. She was just saying what Serena had told her, but it seemed to be a little out-of-context. Perhaps she should take advice less literally from now on.

He let the smile fade slowly from his face and stepped to the side with the most gentleman-like bow he could muster, allowing her to pass through unharmed. He then counted to ten before heading back to the house; just in case that was the direction she was taking as well. He didn't want to be accused of stalking.

As soon as the two quarreling lovers were out of sight, Serena walked over to a very uncomfortable Nate and playfully messed up his mop of hair. "How does it feel to be the puppet-masters this time around?"

"Terrifying," he admitted sheepishly. "One wrong move and this whole beach blows to pieces, I swear."

Serena laughed her agreement before declaring a race to the water. They would have to content themselves with swimming for the next few hours anyway, since the house would be a total warzone. Regardless of the direction Blair had gone, she would have to end up in the same place as Chuck sooner or later, and it would be safer for everyone if they stayed far, far away from that disaster area for the time being.


	3. I Can Hurt You Worse

**If You Think I Want You, Think Again**

Summary: Chuck and Blair fail at communication; Nate and Serena only know how to make things awkward…  
Author's Note: This chapter has a bit more cursing than I usually write, so just so you know :)

**Ch. 3: I Can Hurt You Worse**

"Thanks for going to all this trouble, Sean," Blair said, smiling warmly at the green-eyed, 6-foot Varsity Greco-Roman wrestler by her side.

She had decided a relief-through-shopping trip out in Woodbury Commons was the only way to solve the current crisis. In between the Chanel and Burberry therapy, she had run into Sean Preston. Sean had just graduated from St. Jude's and was going to Brown in the fall based solely on his national ranking in wrestling (and his daddy's money, of course). Despite the fact that she had originally planned on taking the time alone to relax and reflect, who was she to turn down a cute boy's company? So she had allowed him to wait on her hand-and-foot as she tried on clothes, and then to escort her back to Serena's beach house.

He _was_ gorgeous, to be sure, but somehow he really didn't do…_it_ for her. Clearly **certain people **had made her brain-dead. _Doesn't matter, anyway_, she thought to herself as she took in Sean's smitten expression. _I don't need to like him. I just need to __**look**__ like I like him._ Something told her it was wrong to lead boys on like this, but didn't boys do this all the time to girls anyway? She was just using up a tiny portion of goodwill stored up from centuries of men bringing women down. Besides, she had a very specific mission, and it's not like Sean would be hurting for too long. Plenty of girls would be around to lick his wounds later.

"It was my pleasure, Little Miss," Sean responded with a wink as he set her (admittedly heavy) shopping bags down by the door. Blair tried her best to avoid rolling her eyes at what passed for flirting nowadays.

Sean was about to try to come up with some witty remark about how this was her _empty_ Hamptons abode (screwing a guy and his best friend in one week had to mean she was easy, right?), when a lurking lurker came out of the shadows and surprised the hell out of him.

"**What **did you just call her?" Chuck spat out with a terrifying sneer directed at Sean before coming up and placing a protective arm around Blair's waist.

"Why are you touching me, Bass?" She asked him with faux sweetness, ignoring Sean's bewildered looks while she dug her nails into the back of Chuck's hand as sharply as she could. For all his wincing, he refused to let go. How _dare_ he ruin her summer like this? Who the hell was Chuck Bass to think he could go running off with blonde stick-figures and still keep her all to himself? She would have cried if she weren't so damn pissed off.

Sean felt stupid for being scared of Chuck's clearly possessive behavior. Maybe he was dating Blair after all? Regardless, he could take that kid any day. Unfortunately, it wasn't Chuck himself he would have to worry about—it was the hit men Bart Bass would probably send after him if he touched his precious kid. "Uh… I guess I'll be going, then," he said as he backed slowly away from the warring couple and toward the door.

"Wait, Sean, don't you want to see the jacuzzzi?" Blair called out a little desperately, finally managing to release herself from Chuck's death grip by stomping his right foot to little pieces.

"I'll see you soon, Blair. Okay?" Sean replied hopefully, smiling a little. That smile quickly faded, however, when Chuck came menacingly forward.

"No, I don't think you'll _ever_ be seeing her again." Chuck remained completely stony-faced as he slammed the door in Sean's face, but his expression quickly turned deadly when he swirled around to confront Blair.

"What the hell are you doing?" Blair demanded furiously, giving him a little push so that he was up against the door. She was about to walk away without waiting for a response, but Chuck grabbed onto her arm and held her in place.

"**Me**? What about you?" Chuck retorted, pulling Blair in closer until his breath was on her neck. "What do you think you're doing, bringing that asshole into **my** house, huh?"

Blair closed her eyes, imagining Chuck's lips edging just a little closer and grazing her skin. She shook it off with lightning-speed, though, and snapped, "How is it any of your business? We're not **together**." She was careful to say the word with mocking disdain, rather than with the wistful longing she was actually feeling. Maybe they hadn't really _ever_ been together, but Chuck still cheated. He should have known that she wouldn't take his whoring around lightly. _I guess he just didn't care enough_. It was starting to look like nobody ever would.

"Were you trying to make me jealous, Blair?" He asked her with teasing venom that made her cringe and want to slap the shit out of him. Then he leaned in and whispered in her ear, "Because it definitely worked."

The bitter confusion that his statement awoke in her gave her the force she required to pull her hand away. "Don't you dare talk to me like that. Ever again," She commanded him brusquely, walking over to the table in the hallway and leaning against it as she tried to regain her composure.

"Talk to you like what?" Chuck asked, sounding almost genuine for the first time that day. He had thought Blair was playing with him, but now she seemed so angry that he didn't know what he was supposed to do.

"Like… Like you **own** me! Like you have some sort of _claim_!" She cried out in frustration. Surprised by her ability to finally verbalize her problems to the one responsible for them all, the anger coursing through her veins directed her to face him once more. "You have no right to speak to me or even look my way after the way you treated me, Chuck. You lied to me and used me, just as if I were another one of your sluts that you can feel up and then toss out."

She could see his face contorting into something like remorse, but decided it would be best if she ignored it. Her own spite was fueling her at the moment; she didn't need his reactions to continue. "You obviously didn't mean a single thing you said at the wedding. I guess that was just the fastest way to get me back in bed with you or something."

Chuck felt his blood starting to boil. He was many terrible things, yes, but he was not a liar. The very idea that Blair could think him capable of luring her with false promises was maddening. Also, it was just plain mad, since he and Blair hadn't even slept together during their failed trial run. "Would you listen to yourself?" He yelled, "You sound ridiculous. I meant every word I said, so how can you—"

His shouting was interrupted by an even louder Blair. "Oh, really? So that's why you rushed off to fuck the first thing that walked into your line of sight?"

He was about rip his hair out if she didn't stop with the accusations. "How many times do I have to tell you? I did not sleep with her! Nothing happened!" Her face betrayed a hint of trust that was quickly replaced with indifference, and a new realization dawned on him. His exasperated look hardened into a disgusted one as he said in a lower tone, "You're just so eager to jump on the first thing I do wrong, aren't you?"

"Well, you do so many things wrong that it's pretty damn easy, Chuck," she responded with glittering, narrowed eyes.

He threw his hands up in the air and began pacing around the limited space the hallway afforded them. "And, bingo. We're right back at the debutante ball. You won't believe a single thing I do or say because you want to make me into a villain so you can go back to your Prince Charming and live your fairy tale life."

She managed to get out a harsh laugh before stopping him dead in his tracks with her words. "I don't have to **make** you into a villain, Chuck. You already _are_ one."

"Maybe you should just go running back to Nate, then, if that's what you so desperately want," he yelled with renewed vigor. "I'm sure he'll take you back once you get on your knees and beg."

_No. He did not just go there. _Without even thinking about what she was doing, she ripped the miniature Tiffany table lamp from its rightful place and threw it with all her power at Chuck's head. Thankfully, he managed to duck just in time and it hit the door with a deafening crash. They both looked back at it with a mixture of terror (from Blair) and amusement (on Chuck's part) and Blair had just enough time to cover her face with both hands in embarrassment before Nate and Serena came barging in through the front door, all giggles and delight.

* * *

Nate and Serena had spent the entire afternoon eating ice cream, having water fights, and even participating in a good old game or two of beach volleyball. They had given Chuck and Blair roughly six hours to solve their problems before heading home to suggest Boccacini's for dinner. But judging from the shards of stained glass on the floor in front of them, it was pretty clear the kinks in said problems were still being worked out.

Serena didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Her mom really liked that lamp, which was now conspicuously missing from the entryway table. Her mom also really liked Chuck, so it would be a shame if he was brought back to her all bruised and bloody from Blair's torrent of rage. She looked at Nate for an indication of what they should do, but his gaze was fixated on their two best friends.

Nate stared at Chuck and Blair in a mixture of fear and confusion, waiting to see what they were planning on doing next. It seemed as if they hadn't even noticed that two more people had entered the scene. They were both now locked in an electrifying staring contest, just like earlier at the beach. Only this time the air was, if possible, even more charged. Nate was seriously amazed that any two people could generate that much _heat_ with only a look—it was making him uncomfortable.

Chuck was the one who broke the stare down this time around, looking at the ground and chuckling to himself a little. He felt a little bad for saying what he had said, but it was somehow gratifying to know that Blair could hate him enough to want to put him in a possible coma. As long as she felt _something_, there was still hope. Plus, he was impressed that she was able to lift the lamp so effortlessly.

Blair's embarrassment fled the second Chuck started laughing and she felt herself getting riled up again. She knew Nate and Serena were there, but she just couldn't contain herself. "It's not funny, you asshole," she said by way of apology. "I can't believe you would bring _him_ into this."

_Just drop it or the phone's coming at you next,_ he warned himself. But, then again, self-control had never been one of his strong suits. "Why not, Blair?" He asked bitterly. "**You** always seem to do it."

Now it was Blair's turn to smile a little triumphantly. _So __**that's**__ what this is about. _"That's so cute, Chuck. Trying to make this about my issues, when we're clearly only dealing with your insecurities. Clever."

"Insecurities?" Chuck nearly choked on the word. He was 100 percent perfectly secure in everything he did, thank you very much.

"You think I'm not over Nate, so somehow you sleeping with some skank will make it better? Congratulations—" She immediately cut herself off, remembering who was still in the room, listening to every word she had just said. _Damnit_. She **was** over Nate, that was the point she was trying to make, but somehow she had just made everything look so much worse than before.

Chuck was about to yell "I did not sleep with her!" for the twentieth time when he abruptly became aware of a) exactly what Blair had just said and b) the people in the room staring at him like he was a bomb about to explode. He slowly turned to look at Nate and the almost pitying expression on his friend's face made him want to throttle the boy.

The glance Chuck threw him, filled with insane amounts of hatred and shame, gave Nate chills. He suddenly felt sick to his stomach and knew he had overstayed his non-welcome. Breaking contact with Chuck's death-rays and avoiding whatever Blair might look like altogether, he turned instead to Serena and smiled ruefully.

"…I guess this is our cue to leave," Serena announced to no one in particular. "Please, carry on," she joked as she steered Nate out the doorway and left the crazy people alone with their psychosis.

* * *

After dinner, Nate spread a towel out on the sand and invited Serena to sit on it so that they could gaze up at the stars with the peaceful sound of the waves rolling up to the shore surrounding them. They had successfully managed to avoid the topic of what they had just witnessed throughout their meal, focusing instead on the antics of the other beach dwellers and the girls who kept tittering behind their backs because they wanted to approach Nate but were afraid to because of Serena.

Every time Serena made a semi-flirtatious comment about how people might think they were dating, Nate could feel little pins and needles stabbing him in the chest. Why did she have to be so fun and carefree, so blithely unaware of her effect on men? Why did her long, blonde hair have to shine like gold in the moonlight? And, most importantly, why did she have to be Blair's best friend? The questions throbbed in his mind ceaselessly until he wanted nothing else but to poke his eyes out so he wouldn't have to look at her anymore. But, of course, he wanted nothing more than to look at her all day, every day. Oh, the paradox.

That, and so many reasons more, was why he just had to know the truth. "Is Blair really not over me?" he asked tentatively, shaking Serena from her reverie. A reverie that probably involved some kind of reconciliation with Dan.

"Don't worry, she is," Serena responded flippantly, "Chuck's just being stupid." She saw Nate's expression shift in an unreadable way and continued in a more serious vein, "Wait, are **you** not over her?" It hadn't occurred to her that maybe Nate wasn't as comfortable with Chuck and Blair as he let on. But, then why would he have dated Vanessa? They had broken up pretty quickly, though. Maybe because he still had feelings for his ex?

"What? No, it's not that," Nate shook his head. It was almost laughable how off Serena's radar could be sometimes. "I just want to feel like I can, you know, move on…" He gazed searchingly into her eyes, just in case there was any sign of recognition in them.

"Oh, is that why it didn't work out with Vanessa?" Serena asked, clicking her tongue sympathetically. "You felt like you were being unfair to Blair? You don't have to worry about that." She gave him an encouraging nod and said, "You can move on with anyone you want."

Nate swore that a little part of him died in that moment. Serena was so good at inspiring hope in him over and over again, but the realist in him knew that she had no idea what she had just said. Too bad the realist in him didn't know how to come out of his cage, because just then the wind blew some hair into Serena's face and Nate practically jumped at the chance to brush it back into place with his fingers.

"Not with anyone…" He murmured, still not letting his hand leave the side of her face.

She closed her eyes. "Nate…" she whispered in a quiet, breathless voice, completely unsure of what she could say next. She wasn't a total moron and the weight of the scenario she was living had finally hit her. Was she ready for this? _How could I be? I'm still in love with Dan_. But, she hadn't really thought about Dan even once since her stay at the Hamptons had commenced.

Nate managed to always keep her occupied and happy, so she hadn't been wallowing or judging herself. Nate always knew how to keep her mind off any problems. They had always been such close friends, and he accepted her whole-heartedly for who she was. She knew she had always brought out a side of him that he rarely showed around Blair… Ah, there it was. _Blair's your best friend, you jerk. _Even though Blair was over Nate, the sting of the original betrayal would come back in full force if Serena got together with her ex-boyfriend. Suddenly, Serena felt like hating herself all over again.

Nate watched in awe and Serena's eyelids shut and did not flutter open. They remained closed long enough that he was convinced she wanted him to kiss her. He leaned in and caressed her cheek with his other hand. Their lips were so close, all he had to do was move one more inch and they would be touching. And the amazing part was that she hadn't pulled away yet. Nate started to close what little distance was left between them when they were saved from the hellfire that would have awaited them by the dulcet tones of "Mama" by **Spice Girls **emanating from Serena's phone.

Serena leapt onto her phone with a strange excitement, giggling nervously before she answered. "Wow, that's embarrassing. It's Lily, so I just thought the song fit…" Instead of smacking herself in the face like she would have preferred, she hit the talk button and chirped, "Hi, mom!"

"Serena, darling!" Lily greeted her, clearly smiling from the other end of the line. "Wonderful news. Bart is just dying to see all the renovations I've made to the Hamptons house, so we've decided to come and stay. We're on our way now."

Serena couldn't believe her ears. Now was probably the **worst** time they could have possibly picked. "Mom, please. I don't think that's such a good—"

"Now, Serena. I promise we'll be out of your hair in a day or so. Besides, we've barely spent any time together as a family since the wedding. I think it'll be good for us."

She sighed, defeated. "Great, just what I've always wanted."

"Lovely. We'll be there in a couple of hours, sweetheart."

Serena looked at Nate, all thoughts of the previous awkward moment forgotten. "I think we're going to have to go back. Bart and my mom are going to get here and we need to clean the place up."

Nate grinned, strangely pleased that his faux-pas was going to be ignored for the time being. "This is going to be so much fun."


	4. The Ones That Come Easy

**If You Think I Want You, Think Again**

Summary: Chuck and Blair avoid the trap that Logan and Veronica always find themselves in.  
Author's Note: I don't own **Veronica Mars**, I just flove it. Also, sorry for any excessive cheesiness. And I apologize if you don't watch or care for VM. Cuz you should.

**Ch 4: The Ones That Come Easy**

Chuck and Blair eyed each other angrily across the cluttered living room, ignoring the turned-over chairs and magazines strewn about the floor, choosing instead to focus solely on how much they'd like to continue hurting the other. There wasn't much left to throw, however, and Chuck's couch cushion was suffering from all the brilliant defense it had been valiantly providing. Setting it gently back down where it belonged, Chuck then raised his arms above his head like a criminal and asked mockingly, "Are we good now, B?"

The answer, apparently, was a resounding no, seeing as Blair picked up an old copy of Vogue and hit him in the face with it. She wasn't going to waste a** new** one on him, of course.

Not bothering to keep his anger in check, he tore the magazine from her hands and threw it across the room, where it hit a picture of a young Eric and Serena dressed like matching bunnies for Halloween. Lame or awesome? You decide. "Jesus, Blair. What more do you want from me? I try as hard as I can to be your perfect little gentleman and all you think is—"

The word 'gentleman' set off some alarms in Blair's pretty head, and she cut him off with some of that famous upper hand she always seemed to have when fighting with him (or anyone, for that matter). "Did it ever occur to you that I didn't **ask** you to be gentleman? Did I tell you to change a single thing?" Well, _this_ time around she hadn't. But this argument was not meant to rehash the ancient past, but rather salvage the future. She had, once upon a time, expected something from Chuck Bass that wasn't part of his system—back when she thought everything had to fit into the perfect little world she had created in her mind. But it was Chuck himself who had made her see that things could be perfect even when full of imperfections.

"_Everything_ you've done has been of your own accord." She meant to be a little more understanding, but the 'everything' came out a little more bitter than intended, so she had run with it. Hey, it's not like he could pin his sleeping with the decorator on her, right? She had been so relaxed the whole week long, she knew. She hadn't discussed the apartment they would share off-campus in New Haven, the style and cut of her wedding dress, or the name of their first child (Heather, if you must know). She knew she was jumping the gun as always, so she strove to murder those thoughts the moment they bubbled up in her mind. What could she do, though? Old habits _do_ die hard.

So, even though she had done her best to live in the moment with him and not worry or dream about the future, had he still been able to see the sparkle in her eyes? Maybe that had scared him off, and so it really was her fault. The fact that she had just thought that made her want to throw another lamp at him. How **dare **he try to make her feel responsible for _his_ indiscretions? She was tired of feeling like she was never good enough, always doing something to drive her men into the arms of thin, beautiful, _blonde_ women.

"So don't you blame me for whatever the hell you thought you had to do with that skinny bitch, okay? I didn't push you into anything."

Chuck thought about her words for a moment. It was exactly what he had told his father, assuring him that what he loved about Blair was how well she knew him. And yet, hadn't she once told him to behave himself? And dumped him when he hadn't lived up to her lofty expectations? All of these contradicting facts were driving him crazy. "…So you're saying I can just be me, Chuck Bass, louche extraordinaire. And that's okay with you?"

"It WAS okay. God, all I wanted was for you not to sleep with anyone else! In what universe is that hard?" She was starting to feel like a broken record. If broken records ever leaked saltwater, that is.

Chuck balled his fists, his nails digging deep into the flesh of his palms, but he kept his hands pinned by his side. "Damn it, Blair!" He yelled through gritted teeth, "It's hard enough just being in love with you, don't you get that? Do you even know what I go through on a daily basis? Now let's just add that you can't believe me for one single second."

Blair felt her heart constrict in her chest. Did he really just say what she thought he said? "Stop. Rewind. What?"

_Did I really just say that? _It was one thing to proclaim his feelings to Nate, especially if they got him his best friend back, but it was a whole different ballgame to go around telling Blair when she clearly didn't want anything to do with him. "What do you mean, 'what?' I didn't sleep with anyone else, is all I'm trying to say," He responded nonchalantly.

"No, I got that part. Before. Did you just say you love—"

He looked away and rolled his eyes dramatically. "I did not. You're obviously hearing things, Waldorf. Get your ears checked." It's not like she couldn't piece it together from his speech at the wedding, anyway. _Yeah, but then you went and fucked it all up, so there's no point now._

Blair was starting to feel a little sick. Why did he have to act like such a baby? She stared him down, raising her eyebrows and daring him to look at her and repeat the words to her face. He finally met her gaze and his own turned steely. The mask of disinterest came over his features and he frowned in his superior way, letting her know this conversation was officially over.

"Fine, be that way," she called out, sighing heavily as she stalked out of the room and into the kitchen.

Chuck restored his natural expression, plopping himself down on the couch and feeling for the remote buried somewhere underneath the decorative pillows. Exhausted from his exertion, his body felt too numb upon finding it to do anything but pick up the remote control and press the power button. He momentarily forgot his feelings of self-hatred when he saw a rerun of **Veronica Mars** playing on the flat screen in front of him.

_I really hope Serena doesn't waste her time watching this shit._ If he had the strength, he would have changed the channel. But given his current mental state, he was left with nothing to do but watch Logan weep huge girlie tears every time Veronica loved him a little less than he felt he deserved. Why couldn't that dumbass ever just 'make it not true?' What a baby. Chuck Bass would never cry over any woman, no matter how beautiful or brilliant or assertive or _right_ she was. He turned the volume up as far as he could stand and gave all his attention over to the fiction at hand.

* * *

Blair paced around the kitchen, grabbing a cup off the counter and turning on the water purifier for a little refreshment. Her thirst drive was interrupted by the sounds of Jason Dohring whining, "I wasn't trying to hurt you!" _Wow, way to prove a point. _Then, instead of pouring herself a drink, she splashed the cold water on her face. That was exactly what she needed: a wake-up call. Forgetting about the running water entirely, she absent-mindedly tapped out a **Vampire Weekend** tune on the counter as she began formulating her next offense. She nodded to herself, determining her resolve, before she stepped back out into the living room.

* * *

Chuck was on the verge of solving the forced abortion case before even Veronica herself when the TV was rudely shut off. "What the hell? It was just getting good." He complained bitterly, looking up to find Blair looming over him.

She took a deep breath, smiled cautiously, and began. "It's not easy for me, either, you know? Loving someone and still feeling like I can't trust them." She sat down next to him on the couch, sitting on one end while he stayed put on the other.

He turned to her, feeling more pain than he showed, and said as simply as he could, "I can't keep competing with Nathaniel when he's not even around to pull his own weight."

Blair cocked her head to the side, her smile growing wider. "It's not Nate I'm talking about," she replied, slowly reaching out and resting her hand on his own. She could hear him gulp and tried her hardest not to laugh in spite of herself. She had to be serious right now to get her message across. "Do you know how it felt when I got that message from Gossip Girl?" She continued, struggling to sound conciliatory rather than accusatory. "Like someone was literally choking me to death with an Erikson Beamon necklace."

Chuck wanted to say he was sorry for the fiftieth time, but the words died in his throat. All he could do in lieu of apologizing was to ask for further clarification, already having forgotten the whole 'love' part in his confusion. "Why couldn't you just trust me?"

She thought carefully about her response, finally admitting, "It all fit too well, you know? Your text, the blonde in the picture… You are Chuck Bass, after all."

Chuck felt a momentary twinge of guilt. Stupid question. Why should she trust him when he hadn't even trusted himself? He clasped her hand and pressed it to his lips. She let him without a single protest, and he knew that there was still a chance things were going to be okay between them. Taking comfort in that notion, he let go of her hand and moved on to place a soft kiss on her neck.

She closed her eyes and inhaled sharply as she felt Chuck's lips grazing her skin. "…I guess the trust thing really is a Nate issue…Not something _we_ have to worry about, right?" she said once she regained her power of speech.

He continued letting his breath linger as close to her body as possible, enjoying how the hairs on the nape of her neck shot up as he told her everything he felt in the only way he could. "I'm not Nathaniel, Blair." He kissed a different spot for every few words he completed. "I only want you. It was stupid of me to think I could ever make _that_ not true." He whispered the last two words in her ear and topped off his confession with a gentle biting of her earlobe.

She let a soft moan escape, bringing her hands up to run her fingers through his hair while he continued kissing every inch of her that was currently exposed: her neck, arms, shoulders… Everywhere but her face. Her breath became ragged, and she was getting more than a little desperate to finally feel his lips crashing against her own. Unable to wait any longer, she pushed him against the back of the couch and brought her face close to his. Their noses rubbed together for a few seconds before Chuck closed the distance between them with a long, soft kiss that soon became far greedier and anxious on her part.

She straddled him and began covering his neck with wet, hot kisses. Feeling himself already starting to lose some self-control and not wanting to create another awkward moment when Nate and Serena returned, he got them up from the couch, supporting Blair's legs as they wrapped around his waist. There was no way he was going to make it upstairs to his bedroom, though, so he leaned her against a wall and started trailing kisses down her collarbone.

"This needs to come off…" he said smugly, looking over her green bathing suit cover-up. "And how_ convenient _that it opens in the front," he smirked before taking the zipper between his teeth and pulling down a little.

She giggled, but stopped him from going further with a little cough and a slight push back. His passion hit a momentary détente and he looked up at her with a confused, puppy dog expression.

"You first, Bass," she said teasingly, and proceeded to rip open his shirt in one quick motion, causing his buttons to fly in all directions.

"Hey!" He protested, entirely too turned on for his liking, "I **liked** that shirt."

"Yeah," she agreed, in between covering his now-bare chest with a million little kisses. "But not as much as you like me, I'm sure."

"Okay, that's it. Bedroom, now," he commanded gruffly, pushing open the door to the nearest room with one hand and grabbing hold of her legs once more with the other. Soon enough, they disappeared into Blair and Serena's room, not even bothering to shut the door.


	5. Private Eyes Are Watching

**If You Think I Want You, Think Again**

Summary: Blair and Chuck achieve nirvana, Serena and Nate come to as much of a decision as their pretty blonde heads can manage…  
Author's Note: The first section is M-rated and doesn't really add anything to the story, I was just flexing my smut writing for the first time ever. So, I apologize if it sucks and if you don't want to read it, just skip down to the first horizontal bar you see.

**Ch 5: Private Eyes Are Watching**

Blair moaned and arched her back as his wet, hot kisses peppered her skin, from her neck down to her belly button. She grabbed his hair tightly to keep from actually screaming.

"God, Chuck, _please_…" she whimpered as he slid his fingers into her, causing her to thrash wildly in a way she didn't like at all. It was the most amazing feeling in the world, and yet she couldn't deal with the lack of control. Her entire body shuddered as he slowly took his fingers out and she prepared herself to regain everything he had just taken from her.

She flipped herself on top of him and ran her hand seductively down the length of his front.

"What, you don't want me to use my tongue?" he teased her, knowing full-well she could only take so much at a time. He thought it was adorable that she needed to control everything and, he'd never tell her, but he loved it when she was on top of him.

"After," she proclaimed bossily. "It's definitely your turn right now." She struggled to sound far more composed than she felt, like the sex goddess she was supposed to be instead of the quivering girl Chuck always made her into. Little did she know that no matter **what** she sounded like, Chuck would always think she was the girl of his dreams.

He was still in his boxers, which wouldn't do at all. She pulled them off as artfully as she could manage and smiled proudly when she saw how ready and desperate he was for her touch.

Chuck groaned wildly as Blair wrapped her hand around him. It had been too long since the last time they had been like this, together. _Way too long_. He didn't want to go another day without feeling her silky skin brushing against his, let alone another _6 months_. He moaned her name in ecstasy as she moved her hand up and down and he felt himself growing harder by the second, if that was even possible. Once she replaced her hand with her mouth, however, he didn't think he'd be able to survive a minute more.

"Oh, my God… Blair…Shit, Blair… Stop. Stop!" He cried, while at the same time tangling his fingers in her hair so that it was slightly difficult for her to do as he requested.

Shock filled her eyes as she looked up at him, confused and slightly ashamed. "Did I do something wrong?" She asked in a small voice, and he immediately regretted saying anything to make her doubt herself.

"Wrong? Are you crazy? I need you to stop because I am about to lose all self-control, and I'd like to at least be inside of you before that happens," he explained as he pulled her up and kissed her full on the mouth. "You don't want to ruin my reputation anymore than you already have, do you?"

* * *

Serena and Nate surveyed the state of the living room with weary eyes. Serena had no desire to spend a perfectly beautiful Hamptons evening cleaning up after Blair's mess, but she knew that if she didn't, there would be hell to pay when Lily got there. Not to mention that Bart would immediately blame Chuck, and Serena didn't want him to suffer anymore than he clearly already had, even if this was all his fault in the first place.

"What is wrong with them?" Nate wondered aloud. "How do they resolve anything when all they do is…" he paused to pick up the pieces of a broken vase and the dying flowers that once went with it, "…throw things and try to hurt each other?"

Serena shrugged. "I guess it's more effective than our method of avoiding problems and hoping they'll just go away," she teased him, but it was a strange sort of joke. One that was nothing but the truth, and all too real at the given moment.

Nate opened his mouth to retort, even though he had nothing to say in reply to that unintentionally stinging remark, but he was interrupted by the sound of a few moans coming from one of the first-floor bedrooms. He wheeled around and dragged Serena closer to him, just in case it was an intruder she needed protection from or something. Because an intruder would totally go into one of your bedrooms and just start moaning.

"What the…?" Nate barely whispered, but Serena didn't waste any time pondering. She just pulled hard on Nate's arm and led him towards the unmistakable sounds of a pleasure she hadn't enjoyed in quite some time.

"I don't believe it!" She cried in a soft voice when she saw the open door and the two bodies in motion, barely covered by satin sheets. She turned to look at Nate with a horrified expression and saw his mouth open in surprise.

"How did they _do_ that?" Nate asked, bewildered, and Serena honestly didn't know if he was referring to their current position or to their ability to throw a lamp and then proceed to have sex.

"Don't look, Nate!" Serena giggled, covering his eyes with her hands. "I don't think Chuck would appreciate you gaping at Blair like that."

Nate decided this was true, given Chuck's reaction at the beach earlier that day, so he turned a chair around and sat down facing away from the room like a good boy. The noises, however, were much harder to block out.

Serena, meanwhile, didn't think anyone would mind if _she_ were watching, and so she edged closer to the door and allowed herself to peek in. Hey, Chuck had watched **her** have sex, hadn't he? He so owed her one. _You are so creepy! Get out of there! _Her mind kept yelling, but her gaze was already fixed on the pair of them… What were they doing exactly? It looked like fucking, but something about it told her that what they were doing was making love. _Even I've never done it like that…_

"Serena!" Nate gasped, shocked and pretending to be angry, "What are you doing? Give them their privacy!" He brought her back to sit down with him, then politely closed the door on Chuck and Blair.

Serena blushed crimson at Nate's chiding, feeling embarrassed and awkwardly turned on. It was a terrible idea to watch live porn and the sit down next to the guy she had almost kissed only an hour ago. What was wrong with her? Flustered, she began explaining her reasoning in a rushed, hushed voice. "I just…was wondering, you know? Chuck **is** basically the one guy I haven't slept with, as Blair so often likes to remind me. Just thought it would be good to know what I've been missing." She had been trying to make a joke, but that had just come out weird as hell. Looks like she was 0-2 for the night. Stop trying to be funny, S. It doesn't look good on you.

Nate paused for a good minute before opening his mouth, appearing to be mulling over something important and definitely piquing Serena's interest.

"What is it? Don't you dare keep secrets from me!" She exclaimed, inching forward to tickle him into spilling the beans. Probably not the best way to go about it, since he would just stay silent for longer in order to keep her close to him.

Nate let himself fall off the chair, pulling Serena down with him, and rolled around like a maniac while pretending to squirm out of her grasp. Somewhere between his fifteenth fit of laughter and her twentieth squeal, he finally decided it was time to let the truth out. "Okay, okay, I give!" He cried as he put his hands up in the air to signal he had lost the battle. It's fun when everyone wins, isn't it?

"I'm so excited!" Serena clapped her hands and sat cross-legged on the floor in front of Nate, waiting expectantly to hear his big confession.

"It's not that big a deal," Nate mumbled, already feeling dumb for bringing it up in the first place. "I just thought you should know, if your goal was to see Chuck in action, that this… isn't indicative of his normal bedroom behavior."

Serena's mouth fell open and all she could do was let out a scoff of disbelief. "HOW do you know this, Nate?" She searched his embarrassed eyes for a brief second before covering her mouth with her hands. "Oh, my God! You guys really got _that_ drunk?!"

Suddenly, Nate was no longer sitting. He flew to a standing position and made a face of pure disgust. "Gross, Serena! Of course not!" He shuddered at her implications and she gave him a pointed look, desiring him to continue.

When he had finally gotten ahold of his homophobic tendencies, he settled back down to let Serena in on everything he knew. "You know I used to spend the night in Chuck's suite a lot, right?"

"A fact which my dirty, dirty mind never ceases to relish," Serena agreed gleefully.

Nate rolled his eyes before amending, "Whenever I'm too drunk to get myself a cab and Chuck's too lazy to call the limo for me, he just lets me stay over. We don't paint each other's nails or anything. **Anyway**, he never lets my presence… _hinder_ him from entertaining the many ladies that seek his company."

Serena's eyes widened at this. This was too good to be true. "You're joking?" But no, Nate's face was dead serious. "You mean, he just… right in front of you? All the time?"

Nate nodded slowly, surprised by how much he enjoyed Serena's enjoyment of his very up close and personal sex education. "I would pretend to be asleep, obviously. But, sometimes, I just wanted to know… what I should be doing… when the time came." It was hard to speak the words and keep from laughing at the same time. He had never told anyone about watching Chuck and his many mistresses before, because it felt like something dirty and downright wrong. But clearly Serena was cut of the same cloth, and besides, Chuck had told everyone about watching _him_. Now Blair just needed to watch Serena sexing it up and they could all be one happy, incestuous family.

Serena waited impatiently for Nate to continue, but he fell silent after his admission. She pushed on his knee lightly in order to prod him for more details. "Well, how was he? Spill!"

Nate unconsciously grabbed her hand and held it in his own as he answered; she didn't protest. "The point is, it didn't sound anything like… _this_. Any noises I heard came from the girls—he was always silent, like he could care less what they were doing. Or even if they were doing anything or not. I always wondered why he even bothered if he wasn't going to enjoy it as much as he could."

Serena was pensive, mulling over the dilemma. Finally, she gave the easiest answer she could think of. "He was probably just being considerate, since you were there and all."

Nate laughed in agreement, but added, "He could have at least asked **them** to be quiet, too. If I hadn't been so drunk, there was no _way_ I'd be able to sleep through some of those girls."

Their camaraderie over Chuck's sex life officially over, Serena looked down at their intertwined hands and wondered how they got that way. She thought about extracting herself from his warmth, but quickly found her fingers didn't want her to.

"Nate…" she whispered, not knowing what was going to come after his name. Who knew watching your best friends could be such an aphrodisiac. She gently caressed his cheek before taking them back to reality. "I know this all seems so stupid. Blair's with Chuck, I'm not with Dan…"

"But it's not right, I know," Nate finished her sentence for her without bitterness, but removed his hands, leaving her cold and unhappy.

"It's not the right time," she corrected, letting hope bubble within both of them as she imagined the conversation she would have to have with Blair sooner or later. "Not yet."

"Yet?" Nate echoed with a disbelieving grin on his face, biting his lip in anticipation of whenever the "right time" would be.

Thankfully, they were not left to contemplate the situation much longer, for just then the door burst open and the Van der Bass clan entered, ready to get the party started.

"What is my Tiffany lamp doing broken on the floor?" Lily's voice shattered the pleasant silence that had settled between Nate and Serena, but did nothing to interrupt the groans from the bedroom that were now bordering on screams.

"Serena?" Lilly asked in a panic. She definitely did not like what she was hearing.

"What in God's name is that racket?" Bart asked his wife with the same impassive facial expression that he used to greet every unexpected event in his life.

Eric's voice piped up last. "I was totally right. Snow White is _definitely_ a snow not so white."


	6. Family Matters

**If You Think I Want You, Think Again**  
Summary: Serena practices her acting skills, everyone nods approvingly…

**Ch 6: Family Matters**

_Think very quickly_, Serena commanded herself, struggling to find a way to diffuse the situation. She didn't know precisely how her mother and Bart would feel about finding Chuck in bed with Blair, but she was completely sure that Blair would not like it **one bit**. Shooting a warning glance at Nate so he would (hopefully) know to play along, she put her 8th grade Theatre classes to good use by clutching at her leg and screaming at a level that safely drowned out her two best friends.

Nate, genuinely terrified that Serena had been injured while he had been busy daydreaming about their future together, bent down frantically to see what was wrong. "Serena? Are you okay? Where does it hurt?"

Lily thought she might have a heart attack upon hearing Serena's piercing squeals and Nate's worried tone. She seized Eric's hand and rushed into the living room to see what the damage was, leaving Bart to trail in after them after momentarily contemplating whether he was in the mood to see blood today. A second's worth of analysis told him it would look better to go in and take charge of anything Serena needed, so he put on his game face (which looked just like his normal face, if you can believe it) and followed behind his wife.

Serena was sprawled on the ground, still screaming but no longer grabbing her leg. Nate had his hands all over her, fruitlessly searching for the source of the injury and despairing that he had never availed himself of any CPR training… or anything that might _actually _be useful, for that matter.

"I'm so sorry, Serena! I didn't even realize you got hurt…" It was definitely starting to worry him that he couldn't see anything visibly wrong. Hopefully she wasn't being possessed by a demon or anything. Or maybe she had seen a vision of Blair's reaction to the possibility of a Serena/Nate romantic alliance and was now very loudly regretting admitting any feelings for him.

Unable to help herself at the sight of her distraught child, Lily very gracefully ran to her side and lightly pushed Nate out of the way. She held onto Serena's hand and stroked her hair, whispering soothingly, "It's okay, sweetie. Mommy's here…"

Eric made a face, feeling an odd kind of jealousy. When was the last time Mom had talked to _him _that way? Not that he ever wanted to be babied, of course. It was just nice to know people cared.

Bart did not know what to do, so he came up with some contingency plans. "I'll get you a first aid kit, Serena. Nate, please fetch an ice pack from the fridge to apply to wherever she needs." As soon as they returned from their respective missions, Bart put Eric to work propping pillows around Serena's leg.

Meanwhile, Serena had been having some difficulty straining to hear Chuck and Blair and continuing to make as much noise as possible at the same time. Once she was certain that she was the only one in the house making loud, uncomfortable sounds, she took herself down to a whimper.

* * *

Just then, Chuck and Blair came out of the bedroom, almost falling over each other to get to Serena first. Blair's hair was in complete disarray and her cover-up was not zipped, while only one of Chuck's buttons was serving its purpose. The others were missing.

"S, are you all right, swee—" Blair cut herself off when she saw who else was in the room. A furious blush flooded her cheeks. _Shit. Shit!_ She zipped herself up as quickly as she could and started trying to fix her hair, hoping no one noticed her state.

Chuck just smirked when he saw his new family, immediately recognizing why Serena had started screaming. He had to give her some props for being so quick on her feet. He nodded pleasantly in Lily's direction, and then strolled over to kiss her hand.

"Lily, always a pleasure," he greeted her, unabashed by her curious stare and arched eyebrow. "You look beautiful, as usual."

"Why, thank you, Charles," she almost blushed, defenseless against his charm. "And you look… disheveled. Not as usual."

He turned to look at Blair for a split second before answering. She was covering her face and turning away slightly. He felt bad for embarrassing her, so he replied, "I was sleeping. Blair was shaking me awake so that I could help Serena."

Blair resumed a normal posture and threw him a small, grateful glance, letting him know she appreciated the gesture even though it would never work.

Now Bart was suspicious. "Exactly _how_ did you hurt yourself, Serena?"

_Damn_, she hadn't thought that far ahead. Racking her brain for a possible explanation, she went with the first thing that came into her head. Unfortunately, improvisation was not one of her strong suits. "Um… I tripped over the Tiffany lamp. I broke it. I'm sorry." Maybe Chuck had handed out his silent praise too soon.

Without thinking about the possible consequences, Eric blurted out, "Then where is the blood? You cut yourself on glass—where did you hurt yourself?" He wanted to be helpful. If he knew where the injury was, he could apply gauze or a band-aid. But an accidental, fleeting look in Chuck's direction let him know he had just made a booboo. Hello? Had he just forgotten the obviously pleasurable noises he had heard earlier? Cutting yourself on glass certainly did not produce _those_.

Lily furrowed her brows before leaving Serena's side and turning back to Chuck. "Charles," she began with a knowing smile, "what did I tell you about cavorting?"

He took Blair's hand in his own and smiled back at his stepmother with delight. "That it shouldn't happen after hours?"

Lily nodded, obviously beaten at her own game. She winked at Blair, who just looked down at the ground intently. Then she cleared her throat before announcing, "It looks like Serena will be fine. I think Nate can take care of her this evening, can't you, dear?"

Nate nodded obediently, but he was super-confused at this point. Obviously Serena had lied about the lamp, but had she done that to take the blame off Blair, or had she simply never been injured in the first place? If he kept thinking about it, his head might start hurting.

"Meanwhile," Lily continued in her most businesslike tone, "I think we should go out to dinner, Bart. I'm sure everyone else has already eaten, and we don't want to impose on their evening. Eric, I think you should come, too. Chuck will probably want to get back to his nap, and Blair has no use for you."

Eric, now vastly amused by Blair's discomfort, slapped his stepbrother on the back. "I always knew you'd get your girl back, man."

Chuck grinned. "So maybe now you'll trust my tips on how to get guys, hmm?"

Lily did not find this comment as entertaining as Eric seemed to, and she began fingering her collar uncomfortably. She had not yet thought fit to inform her husband of Eric's sexuality, and didn't even want to imagine his reaction. Best-case scenario, she'd get a lecture (in thinly veiled business metaphors, of course) on how she needed to be more open about her life. She took a deep breath and gave Bart a defiant glance, daring him to say something belittling or even remotely unsupportive about her son.

Bart coughed. What had Charles just said? Why would Eric need get **guys**? He noticed his wife's face color slightly as she eyed him warily. He had clearly missed an important family bonding moment. Apparently he had a gay stepson. Well, that was fine. That was good. The world needed diversity.

"Charles has a very keen business mind. I'm sure he's quite adept at transferring his good sense there into all kinds of relationships. It's not as different as one might expect. Might do you some good to pay attention, Eric." There, that would do.

Everyone in the room stared at Bart like he might be a little crazy, except Lily, who smiled fondly at him. She loved that she was constantly discovering all the ways she had previously underestimated his good heart. And except Chuck, who beamed like his father had just called him the best son a man could ask for.

* * *

So with that heartwarming speech completed, the parental units whisked Eric out of the beach house and went to find some food. Blair breathed a long sigh of relief the moment she heard the door click shut behind them.

"Oh, my God," she cried as soon as it was safe. " 'I broke the lamp?' Seriously, S?"

Serena shrugged. "I'm sorry I don't think as fast as you do, B."

Blair smiled at the compliment. "Well, thanks for trying, I guess."

Chuck whirled her around so she was facing him once more and leaned his forehead against hers. "Would you like to tuck me back into bed, Waldorf?" He drawled seductively, "I don't think I was quite done with my nap…"

Serena immediately covered her ears and buried her face in Nate's chest to block out the visions. "You guys!" She whined, "Do you ever stop?!"

They ignored her, of course. Blair began playing with Chuck's collar as she pretended to think about his suggestion. "…I guess I could help you there. I'm sure I've got some sleeping pills you could use, if you really needed them."

"As long as you're sufficiently over the shock of being caught," he amended, not wanting to push her into anything if she still felt uncomfortable.

She smiled at him. "I live for the thrill, Chuck. You know that." And with those words, she dragged him back into the room by his collar. This time, they shut the door behind them. Damn.

"I am not sitting around here and listening to them again," Nate informed Serena. "I think I've taken enough notes for the night, thank you. I no longer need to be reminded of my inadequacies in bed."

Serena scrunched up her nose at his self-effacing joke. She wanted to let him know he wasn't all that inadequate, but perhaps it was too soon to make that kind of comment. Instead, she giggled lightly and grabbed his hand. "What do you want to do then, Mr. Low Self-Esteem?"

"Well…" He grinned goofily, suddenly having the perfect idea. "I think this evening has got us all feeling a little hot, yes? I say we cool off in the Jacuzzi."

Serena nodded enthusiastically, loving the idea. "And then we can alleviate all the tension we've worked up by playing video games in your room! …Very loud video games."

Nate glanced in faux-worry at the closed door behind which Chuck and Blair would surely start rekindling their romance once more. "Perhaps we should turn the Wii on _first_, and then get in the Jacuzzi. Just in case."

* * *

Exhausted after a long session, Blair collapsed onto Chuck and absent-mindedly caressed his chest. She wanted to look up at him, to see his self-satisfied expression that would hopefully include a little bit of real happiness in it, but she felt herself unable to do so. She was paralyzed by the realization that this might be the first time they would actually fall asleep together after _being_ together. The thought terrified her, as she had no idea if they should speak or snuggle or lie on opposite sides of the bed. Would Chuck even want to stay? Would he just get up and leave?

His arms wrapped around her, enveloping her in his warmth, and he shifted a little so that he could face her. "Do you think my sis will mind if I take her place tonight?" He asked her in a teasing tone, but he wanted to gauge her reaction very carefully. He assumed they were officially back together now, but maybe Blair needed a little more time before letting him sleep over or do whatever official couples did.

It was funny how, now that he had Blair by his side, he was no longer worried about what kinds of things _he_ was ready to do. His fears about changing and giving part of himself up seemed so stupid when he looked at her beautiful, smiling face. How fucked up was it that he had thrown away an entire month of her company based on a moment's hesitation? Life sure was cruel.

Blair's lips curved into a slight smirk. "I'm sure S get over it soon enough. She might even take advantage of being able to take _your_ place tonight."

Chuck laughed easily. "Exactly what is that supposed to imply?"

"Oh, just that I'm thinking she might try snuggling up to Nate the way **you** probably always do. He'll feel lonely tonight if she doesn't."

He scoffed, nipping playfully at her ear before replying, "There is a couch on which Nate sleeps _by himself_, thank you very much." The light banter about Serena and Nate, however innocent it might be, served to lift any lingering doubts he might have had over where Blair's feelings might lie.

Blair settled into her **boyfriend** and reached her hand up to smooth out a patch of his hair. "Chuck…" she whispered, "don't ever leave me waiting again, okay? Because then I'd have to castrate you, no matter how much less useful you would be afterwards."

He didn't know how to verbally respond to the vulnerability behind her bravado, and he hated having to be reminded so soon of his recent shortcomings. At this moment, he felt like they would never repeat themselves again, but what if something made him snap tomorrow? He was much stupider when she wasn't around, it seemed.

He kissed her softly on the mouth, then kissed her forehead and looked into her deep brown eyes. What did this obsession with being 'Chuck Bass' even mean? First of all, all he needed to know to make a change was that what he had done had hurt her. Secondly, Chuck Bass was someone who made sure that those who were worthy of his affection had everything they could ever want. If both those things were true, then he could be sure he would never consciously do anything to hurt Blair Waldorf again. Besides, she was obviously going to keep him so occupied that he would never again have time to even _look_ at another woman, let alone ditch her at a helipad for one.

Content with the silent promise she saw reflected in his eyes, Blair sighed happily and fell asleep in his arms, her leg entwined in his.

* * *

It was 3 A.M. when Nate finally admitted that Serena was the master of all things Wii. Bart, Lily, and Eric had already returned and were sound asleep. Serena decided it was safe to go in and check on Blair, hoping Chuck had already left so that she could get some rest herself. Then again, Serena wasn't sure she'd want to sleep in _that bed _ever again. How unfair that she was going to have to sleep on the couch in her **own room**.

She knocked softly on the door and, upon hearing no response, cracked it open and snuck in. The sight that greeted her was possibly more disturbing than the one she had seen the last time she sauntered into the room. Chuck and Blair had obviously fallen asleep together in the bed. No, not _in_ the bed—**on** the bed. They looked perfectly angelic and in love, except for one problem: they were both completely naked.

_Well, __**that's**__ something I've never seen before_, Serena thought grimly as she tore her gaze away from Chuck's lower half. _Jesus Christ, how much can one girl take? _She had just seen her stepbrother's penis. Why was her life so wretched? With the speed of lightning, she ripped an extra comforter from the shelf and threw it over them, as if that motion would erase the image that was now permanently burned into her memory.

She stumbled out of the room and almost ran into Nate, who was waiting outside for her.

"I am never going back in there again. Not ever!" She gasped, shaking off the residual icky feelings. One the one hand, she was thrilled for Blair (and for Chuck, sort of). But on the other? GROSS.

Nate gave her a comforting hug. "It's okay, you can sleep with me, you know." Oh, _awkward_. He immediately pulled away and tried again. "Not _with_ me. Just, you know, in my room. On the bed. I'll sleep on the couch, obviously."

Serena shook her head, "Don't be ridiculous, Nate. I want you to have the bed. It's not fair to steal it from you."

He smiled. "Don't worry about it. Chuck would have made me sleep on the couch, anyway. He likes power plays."

She made it halfway up the stairs before finally responding, "You know what? I think we should both sleep in the bed. Why not? We did it all the time when we were younger, and we definitely deserve a good night's sleep after what we've been through today." She flashed him a brilliant smile, which he returned with equal fervor. His lopsided grins always made her melt a little.

She was definitely going to have to speak to Blair tomorrow.


	7. Hold The Romance, Please

**If You Think I Want You, Think Again**  
Summary: Everyone comes to an understanding until somebody makes a surprise appearance…

**Ch 7: Hold the Romance, Please**

Early the next morning, Blair shook a very sleepy Chuck awake, not even bothering to cover herself up as she did.

Chuck slowly rubbed the sleep out of his eyes and smirked when he caught sight of her naked body. "My, my. Ready for another round so soon? I'd say I'm too tired, but for you, I'm willing to make an exception." He sat himself up and wrapped his arms around her slender figure, kissing her neck and working his way down her collarbone.

Blair moaned softly, but pushed him away after a few moments. She graced him with a smile, explaining, "As tempted as I am, Chuck, I'm afraid I've called on you for a service of a more mundane variety."

He sighed heavily, slightly deflated (in more ways than one) by the sturdy rejection of his advances. "What is it, Princess?"

Blair let out a tiny scoff, as if the answer were obvious. "I'm hungry."

"And you plan for us to go eat like this?" He inquired, gesturing to his unclothed self. Come to think of it, that wouldn't be so bad…

"No!" She hit him playfully. "I just thought we should go somewhere nice and celebrate getting over our latest bump."

He gave her a knowing look. "That… and make sure Gossip Girl knows you've got me back in your clutches, right?"

She didn't even blush, but she did shrugged nonchalantly. "I just don't want there to be any more misunderstandings." Walking over to the closest to pick out an outfit, and in the process allowing Chuck to gaze adoringly at her backside, she exclaimed, "Let's go!"

* * *

Serena awoke, slightly groggy but well rested, and found herself in the strong arms of Nathaniel Archibald. He had apparently decided she needed some warmth during the night and had managed to wrap himself tightly around her in his sleep. She took a moment to let it all sink in: her head resting on his chest, her arm somehow dragging itself across his waist… It was all so picture perfect; too perfect to be real. In fact, it _couldn't_ be real. If Blair walked in right now, she might have a major freak out. Which would lead to Chuck having a major freak out. Which would lead to who the hell knows, because no one had ever seen Chuck really freak out.

So Serena did her best to expertly and efficiently extricate herself from her current position without waking Nate. She looked at him sleeping so peacefully, like an innocent little boy with an extremely toned body and slightly tousled hair that always managed to look perfectly in place, and wished she could stay next to him for just a little bit longer. But that was a dangerous thought so long as she had not informed her best friend of her intentions. It was one of those dreaded conversations that made Serena want to run away to Connecticut rather than actually face her fears. It would be best if she just avoided him until she could talk to Blair—the temptation to run her fingers through his hair or to caress his cheek was far too strong.

She grabbed a robe and started to slip out of the room in search of her other friends. She felt like a lemming following its leader over the edge of a cliff, or some other equally stupid animal with a death wish.

Of course, the god of sleep had to choose just that moment to release Nate from his dream world, and Serena heard his voice call out to her retreating figure: "Serena! Where are you going?"

She turned to face him with a sigh. She could just be going for some breakfast, but then he'd want to join her. No matter **what** she said she was doing, he would want to follow. Why wouldn't he? They were friends, after all. "I… I need to be alone this morning, Nate. I'll see you soon." And with that, she disappeared from view, now feeling like a huge bitch as well as a suicidal one.

Nate shook his head, making sure he had heard correctly. Why was Serena being so cold? He hoped he hadn't done anything wrong the night before. Too much inappropriate touching, perhaps? But he couldn't account for the things he did in his sleep, so there was no way she could hold it against him. Hopefully some Fruity Pebbles would make him feel better. Maybe he'd even ask Alfonso to make him some pancakes with chocolate chips in them.

* * *

Blair and Chuck ended up sharing a deluxe breakfast menu at Bouzy Rouge, being gross enough to feed each other on occasion. But only on very rare occasion, mind you, and only acceptable foods like waffles. No slurping up the same noodle or anything nasty like that.

Out of the corner of his eye, Chuck saw that effing asshole, Sean Preston, walk into the restaurant and blanch at the sight of the two of them together. Taking advantage of such a perfect moment, he slid around the circular booth and sat himself next to Blair. He cupped her face in his hands, whispering, "Thanks for not letting me starve, Waldorf," and leaned in to give her a passionate kiss.

Blair gave in for a few seconds before recollecting that they were still in a public place and that she was now bordering on trashy. Poking his chest as a warning sign, she backed away with a, "Ugh, Chuck! What do you think you're you doing?"

Chuck saw Sean smirk a little at this display of disgust and began to glower a little. "I don't see why I can't kiss my _girlfriend_ when I want to."

Blair furrowed her brows for half a second before realizing that there was a muscular wrestler she had used to make Chuck jealous in close proximity. Then she broke into a wide grin. "You're worried about Sean _Preston_? Really, Chuck, you're too much."

Chuck lowered his gaze, a little embarrassed at having been caught red-handed. "I just thought it was only fair to let him know what was up."

"You're pathetic, you know that?" She said teasingly.

Now he smiled, too, and replied, "Yeah, but you love me like that," with self-satisfied tone that melted away any of his previously fleeting insecurity.

Blair shivered unconsciously at the word 'love,' but chose instead to focus on Sean's jealous gaze. She gave him a flirtatious wink and, as expected, his expression softened considerably.

Of course, Chuck saw the gesture and scowled. "Why the hell did you do that?"

She smiled sweetly at him. "So I can follow it up with this…" And then she resumed the hungry kiss he had begun just moments ago, closing what little distance there was between them and almost knocking over her black and white shake in the process. At this point, who cared what Sean's face looked like?

Breathing heavily, Chuck broke away and whispered, "I think we need to get out of here before I get carried away."

Blair couldn't agree more.

* * *

Serena had been impatiently awaiting Blair's return from the second she left Nate's room. She had not spoken one single word to him that entire morning, or even looked his way, for that matter. She knew she was overreacting, but she wanted to do everything right this time. Nate, meanwhile, had given up trying to talk to her, figuring it was some kind of "girl thing" she was going through. He was now entertaining himself by teaching Eric how to properly play croquet in the backyard.

Serena practically lunged on Blair the minute she walked through the doorway, which unfortunately prevented Chuck from completing his original promise of getting carried away in the beach house. Chuck grumbled to himself about his wasted libido as he watched Blair and Serena go into an office room to talk, but no one was listening to his complaints, so he soon headed out to join Nate and Eric in their game.

Once they were alone, Serena sat Blair down in front of the desk and began pacing around the room. She thought perhaps it would be better if she sat down as well, but she couldn't bring herself to be still. It made her too nervous.

"S, what's the matter?" Blair asked her best friend worriedly. She had no idea what could be wrong and it was starting to make her feel a little queasy the way Serena kept tracing the same circle over and over again with her movements.

"I'm a terrible friend, Blair. I know I haven't been there for you when you needed me, and I've betrayed you in unspeakable ways…" Serena began, finally gluing herself to the chair so she could look Blair directly in the eyes as she formulated her apology-request. She didn't know where to go from there, though. She would have probably been better off writing her speech down on a napkin. God knows she had enough time to prepare.

Blair laughed uneasily. "Honestly, Serena. I hope that's all in the past now. We've come so far from where we were a year ago, I don't think there's any need to rehash the past."

That stopped Serena momentarily. If they had come so far, then why did she feel like she was in exactly the same place as before? She had never gotten any closure—that was the problem. She had never felt like she properly repented for her sins. She had gotten off scot-free while all her loved ones suffered for the stupid stunts _she_ pulled. And now she was going to ask her best friend, the one person she cared about more than anyone in the world (except maybe her brother, and even **that** was a close call) to put aside her old feelings just so she could try out a relationship with Nate? How exactly was that fair?

"You know what? Never mind. I'm just being silly. I just want you to know I love you, B. That's it. Thank you for everything you've ever done for me. You're the best friend a girl could have." She moved to kiss Blair on the cheek and then made her way out of the small office that was starting to suffocate her.

"Serena, wait," Blair called out firmly.

Serena complied and sat herself back down again, ready for her possible punishment.

"Is this about you and Nate?" Blair asked, unable to conceal the grin that was playing on her lips. Any talk about betrayals and friendships gone wrong inevitably led back to poor Nathaniel Archibald. Blair had heard all about Serena and Nate's growing bond over the summer from Gossip Girl, who always made sure to keep the world informed of the private affairs of others. Of course, she knew Serena would not have gone behind her back and started dating Nate, but she did question if their feelings for each other were reawakening after spending all that time together. Looks like she had been right to wonder.

Serena nodded slowly in response to Blair's blunt question, cringing inwardly in preparation for the subsequent backlash.

Instead Blair giggled. "Serena, you're being ridiculous," she chided lightly. "If you want Nate, and he feels the same way... go for it!"

Serena stared at her friend with wide eyes, unsure if she was dreaming or if this could actually be reality. "Wait… You don't have a problem with this? This is, like, representative of all the terrible things I've done to you!" She didn't know why she was trying to sabotage herself, but it just seemed surreal for Blair to accept so easily now what had nearly destroyed her a year ago.

Blair shrugged, subconsciously asking herself the same question as Serena. How _was_ she okay with this? Nate had been the love of her life, and worse, he had represented one more thing Serena had taken from her over the years. But then she remembered what she had said to Vanessa Abrams at the wedding and, suddenly her logic returned to her.

"I've always known, on some level, that Nate's heart wasn't entirely mine. The past two years I've just been lying to myself, you know? And Nate's been torturing himself trying to 'love me as he should,' or whatever. It's just too much. We're _teenagers_. This isn't the time to be picking out houses and rings and planning out our lives together. We should be allowed to be with whomever we want and not worry about the future or the past. I want to be with Chuck, and you **clearly** want to be with Nate. So, just do it."

Serena thought about Blair's heartfelt speech and felt her signature carefree smile slowly return to her lips. "So, basically what you're saying is that you _haven't_ thought about 2.5 kids and white picket fences with Chuck?"

Blair rolled her eyes. Serena always _could_ see right through her. "Please. Could you imagine Chuck as a father?"

Serena snorted. "Well, at least you know he'd spoil the kids rotten."

Blair shook off her little dreams once more and asked Serena shake off her fears. "Don't you _dare_ tell Chuck we had this conversation," she said, pointing her index finger warningly. "I'm working on living in the moment, and now you need to do the same."

* * *

Serena walked out to the back garden with an air full of purpose. As soon as she saw Nate's figure approaching, she gave him a friendly smile and waved. "Hey, Nate! I think there's an unfinished game of virtual tennis with your name on it."

Nate smiled with that adorable puppy dog expression he often reserved for her as he ran up to the back door. "I guess this means I'm back on your good side, huh?"

Serena turned away with embarrassment, "Sorry about that… I needed to talk to Blair…"

Nate nodded his understanding and let her lead the way back to his room, ignoring the catcalls coming from his previous game partners. Why was it that everyone else seemed to know his business before he did?

Before closing the door, Serena called back to her stepbrother, "Chuck, I think Blair is requesting your presence in the living room."

Eric laughed delightedly at this news. If he wasn't getting any action this summer, he could at least be happy everyone _else_ was. He still had some time, anyway. "Make haste, brother!" He teased, "You wouldn't want to miss such an important booty call."

Once they were in the boys' room, Serena and Nate sat on the couch with the game console very decidedly turned off, simply gazing at each other and contemplating what their next move might be. Serena hadn't spoken a single word since entering the room, and Nate hadn't asked her to elaborate on the silence. He could already guess that her mere presence meant they had been given a green light to pursue the next step in their friendship.

The problem was, neither one had any clue what to do next. Their last physical encounter had happened out of the blue, in a drunken stupor at that. This was different, though. This was not a heated moment of unbridled passion, but rather a quiet one between two lifelong friends who just might want to be something more.

Finally, Nate thought it best to break the silence, lest they be stuck there until they were old and gray. "So… you spoke to Blair." It was a statement that invited further commentary, not a question requiring confirmation.

His one remark released a waterfall of one-sided dialogue from Serena. "Yeah, she seems fine with everything… I feel so bad, though, for treating you the way I did this morning. You just looked so, I don't know, sweet? I just… I hurt everyone, you know? I don't even know what I'm doing, everything seems fine, and then everything's in pieces all of a sudden. But Blair says it's okay, and I want to try this. I really do, but I don't want to hurt you because—"

And no one ever got to hear the end of that **fascinating **sentence because Nate decided enough was enough and just kissed her already.

* * *

Blair was on top of Chuck on the living room couch, kissing his neck, playing with his hair, and officially no longer caring if anyone walked in. As he reached up to catch her bottom lip in his teeth once more, though, the doorbell rang and they were shaken out of their playful reverie.

Sighing, Blair got up to answer the pesky doorbell and was confronted with the sight of a very haggard Dan Humphrey.

Dan looked back and forth between Blair, with her hair in disarray, and Chuck, with his some of his buttons undone. He raised his eyebrows and offered a hearty-yet-awkward "Congratulations, you two." His warm greetings were not returned with equal fervor, however, and he quickly fell back into his original despair.

Blair would have liked to look at him coldly and boot him out of the house, but the truth was that Dan didn't seem any more at fault for Serena's heartbreak than Serena herself did. Plus, Dan looked pretty upset already. So instead she asked, as kindly as she could manage, "What are you doing here, Cabbage Patch?"

Dan looked pleadingly into Blair's eyes. "Please, I need to see Serena. I made a huge mistake, and I've been regretting it all summer. I just want to talk to her, I've been wanting to for weeks, but I just worked up the courage—just now."

By this time Chuck had gotten up off the couch and made his way to the door, effectively blocking the path Dan might have chosen to take in order to find his beloved. "As flattered as I'm sure she'd be to hear that you rode a _train_ for three hours just to see her, I don't think you should try speaking to Serena at this time."

Dan focused his gaze on Chuck and glared. "Do you **really **think you're going to stop me this time?"

Chuck crossed his arms and glared right back with a look that very definitely said _try me_.

Normally, Dan would have just let it go, walked away, maybe called Vanessa and cried softly into the phone for a few hours. But not today. He **had** to see Serena, to make everything right again. He had spent the whole summer trying to forget he had ever known her, but that sure as hell hadn't worked. He missed her and, from some of her forlorn pictures on Gossip Girl, he could easily guess that she was missing him, too. So, he did the one thing he could think of—he punched Chuck.

"Oh, my God!" Blair cried out, pushing Dan angrily before running to Chuck's side. "That was uncalled for, Humphrey!"

"Suit yourself, Humphrey Dumpty," Chuck growled angrily from his new spot on the floor. "I was just trying to protect you from a very rude awakening."

Dan apologized profusely once he was at a safe distance, but didn't forget to add, "I **told** you I owed you one more black eye." Then he rushed up the stairs to find Serena.

Blair kissed Chuck's eye and he let her, even though it hadn't really been a very hard punch. Resting his head on her shoulder, he sighed melodramatically. "Poor Nathaniel…"

Blair laughed. "I'm actually placing my bets on 'poor Cabbage Patch.' Nate _does_ have a certain charm, after all…"

Chuck bristled at this and gave her a semi-murderous glare, which only served to amuse her further.

Rolling her eyes pleasantly, she proclaimed, "Of course, you would win hands down. But you're not looking to be in the running, now, are you?"

He reluctantly agreed, "Incest is so last year."

* * *

Nate and Serena were both very much into the kiss now, having gotten over the awkward first stage of bridging the gap between friends and lovers. Serena tangled her fingers in his hair, and he pulled her as close to him as he could.

Just as she was thinking what a fool she was to have not started doing this sooner, the door opened, and she caught a glimpse of a nightmarish sight. In mid-moan, she managed to get out, "Mmm… Dan!"

Nate pulled away immediately, "Uh... I'm Nate, Serena. Nate." Damn, maybe this had been a bad idea. He knew it would take some time for Serena to get over her last boyfriend, but it was probably doomed if she was already saying his name when all they had done was kiss.

Serena shook her head, though, and nodded towards the door. And that's when Nate saw Dan's horror-stricken face for the first time. Feeling mortified, especially because Dan was a good guy and someone he might have considered a friend one day, Nate turned back to look at Serena. Her face had a very peculiar expression on it as well. One that looked… **guilty.**

_Oh, yeah. _This had _definitely_ been a bad idea.


	8. All I Ever Needed And So Much More

**If You Think I Want You, Think Again**  
Summary: Serena has one too many guys; Blair has a competitor (sort of) for Chuck's affections…

**Ch 8: All I Ever Needed And So Much More**

Dan, eyes growing ever wider and mouth hanging slightly ajar, shifted his gaze from Nate's bewildered expression to Serena's remorseful one. He could barely remember why he had come to this hellhole in the first place, but he knew it had been in vain. _What did you expect, Humphrey, _the knowing voice inside him chided angrily. He was the one who had let her go without a second thought. The more vindictive part of him was dying to say, _You know what she's like, anyway_, but he knew that was unfair. This **wasn't** what Serena was like, not anymore. If she was making out with Nate, it had to mean something.

Without saying a single word, he nodded as some kind of indication that he would be okay, and then backed himself out of the room as quickly as possible.

Serena had already broken away from Nate and was now covering her face in her hands. How could she have been so stupid? Now she felt like the worst person ever—hurting both boys in one fell swoop, while once again only trying to make herself happy. She felt Nate come over and place a comforting hand on her shoulder, which only served to upset her even more. How was he able to be so **nice** to her, when she was nothing but this cruel heartbreaker?

She turned to look at him gratefully, and whispered in an urgent voice, "I'm so sorry, Nate, but I have to go talk to him. I have to…make sure he's okay. That _we're_ okay." She hadn't wanted to say that last part, but she needed to start this off on the right foot. She couldn't try to 'be' anything with her best guy friend if she wasn't over her ex-boyfriend. She had to know once and for all where her feelings lay.

Nate held back the sigh that was threatening to escape from his lips. "Of course," he replied reassuringly. "I understand."

He watched as Serena scampered out of the room after Dan, pausing only long enough to throw a sweet glance back his way. Once she was gone, he slumped down on the couch and cursed his stupid luck.

* * *

Chuck and Blair had decided to go to Stereo By The Shore to continue the celebration of their newfound bliss, which would hopefully last more than a week this time. Well, it was more so Blair could celebrate than anything. Chuck couldn't understand what had possessed her to go somewhere so crass. A dance club? Really? He didn't even get why they had to celebrate anything out of doors in the first place.

At first, Chuck refused to dance, because these were not the high society waltzes he had been forced to learn throughout his youth. This sort of dancing was completely different and, while there was nothing he would like more than to thrust and grind up against Blair like an animal while a remixed version of "If I Never See Your Face Again" featuring **Rihanna** played in the background, there was something distinctly _trashy_ about doing it in front of 100 other people. Half of which would be staring at Blair as if they'd like to be doing the same thing. But then Blair had given him an ultimatum: either he would dance with her, or _someone else_ would. Needless to say, he had chosen the former option.

Now they were finally taking a break (thank _God_), so that Blair could use the restroom and Chuck could drown his woes in a Scotch (they **did** have that sort of thing in this place, right? That wasn't too sophisticated for them, was it?). He smirked as she walked away, appreciatively eyeing the way her hips swung from side to side, and the way her dress clung perfectly to her figure. Then he glanced around the room to make sure no one else was doing the same thing. After all, this place was low-rent enough that he wouldn't feel out of order starting a bar fight. His eyes locked momentarily with a tall, well-built brunette guy, but Chuck looked away once he was satisfied the guy was uninterested in Blair.

No more than a few minutes had passed, but Chuck was already started to wonder what the hell she was doing in the bathroom. Primping? Showering? God forbid she was actually _conversing_ with one of the girls inside.

Out of nowhere, the same guy that he had glanced at was seating himself beside Chuck at the bar. Chuck didn't pay any attention to him, until the guy cleared his throat and said, "Hey. I'm Mark."

Chuck resisted the urge to roll his eyes. Why did this _Mark _think it was okay to speak to him? He turned his head and gave the stranger a once-over, debating whether or not he was worthy of receiving a response. His clothes were actually decent; he seemed to be very well put-together. Perhaps someone had dragged him here, as well? They were kindred spirits, in a sense. United against the crazy females of the world.

Chuck nodded in Mark's direction. "Chuck Bass," he greeted, wondering if perhaps he shouldn't have said his full name. He didn't actually want it to get out that he frequented clubs that were not of the burlesque variety. That would surely not be good for business.

"Can I buy you a drink?" Mark asked, in what might be construed as a flirtatious manner.

This definitely put Chuck on his guard. "No, thanks," he replied tersely, motioning to his Scotch. "As you can see, I can afford my own."

Surprisingly, Mark laughed heartily. "That's not exactly the point, now is it?"

Now Chuck felt a little bit flustered. Clearly, this guy was _hitting on him_. Not that he wasn't flattered, of course. But at the same time, it was a little insulting. Since when was it cool to just decide someone was gay and go with it? _Then again, you __**do**__ assume every girl you see is straight_… Or if they weren't already straight, they would definitely turn straight for him. So he guessed he had to give this guy props for having the balls to come over.

"I'm actually just waiting for someone to come back, so I can get the hell out of here," he explained. The poor guy deserved to be let down easy.

"I get it," the guy said, smiling all the while. "But if you weren't interested, why did you beckon me over?"

"Excuse me?" Chuck asked, some indignation creeping into his voice. This Mark guy was definitely losing some cool points.

"Come on, you looked at just now. It was very…provocative."

Chuck _did_ roll his eyes this time. "Sorry if you misinterpreted my gaze. I was actually observing my girlfriend's backside. She must have walked right past you. Not that I would know, since I wasn't looking at you in the first place."

"Why did you insist on hiding?" The guy asked sympathetically. "I don't even believe you have a girlfriend," he teased. Chuck's nostrils flared dangerously, and this amused him even more. "I mean, look at the way you're dressed. You can't _possibly_ be straight."

Chuck looked down at his light pink shirt and purple pants. Okay, so maybe Mark had a point. He _was_ a pretty well dressed man, if he did say so himself. "As much as I appreciate the compliment to my fashion sense—dressing well is not actually a foolproof measure of how gay one is. Way to stereotype."

Mark looked slightly offended, and Chuck felt the need to placate him a little bit. "Were I single, perhaps I would give this a shot, as I am pretty open about these things. But, alas…"

* * *

Serena finally caught up with Dan on the lawn outside the beach house. "Dan, please listen to me," she begged him, tugging on his shirtsleeve.

He pulled his arm away, not trying to be rude but needing to avoid physical contact. "No, you know what, Serena?" He began, taking a deep breath and remembering what his father always taught him about being the better man. "You're moving on. That's great. I'm happy for you, really." He shrugged and couldn't help remarking, "I don't need the drama, anyway." It was a parting shot meant only to make himself feel somewhat like a winner.

Attempting to get him to stay, but also finally ready to admit the real reason she was so scared of starting over, she called out, "I'm **trying** to move on, but I don't know if I'll actually be able to."

Dan turned back to look at her, smiling a little. "Maybe we should try to find out, then?" He'd never been able to resist her.

So they decided to go to sit by the beach to catch up and figure everything out.

* * *

Chuck and Mark had fallen into a more comfortable conversation, but Chuck could tell the guy still didn't believe he was straight. If only Blair would come out of whatever toilet she had fallen into, then maybe he would be able to prove his point.

As if sent from the heavens above, Blair reappeared at Chuck's side, wearing an entirely new outfit. How in the world had she managed to fit that into her bag? The world of women was definitely beyond him, it seemed.

She had heard part of the conversation between Chuck and this new boy, and she had an idea that her poor boyfriend was being baited. So she did her feminine duty and sat on Chuck's lap, playing with his hair and giving him a light kiss on the lips before saying, "I'm sorry I took so long, Chuck. My dress was just really… Ugh, you know how much I despise sweat."

Chuck smirked at this. "I thought the idea was that you _didn't_ sweat, sweetheart."

Blair flashed him a winning smile. "Of course I don't. The sweat was all yours, I assure you." She then turned her attention to the stranger and raised an eyebrow. "Who is this? Your new boyfriend?" She was allowed to have a **little** fun.

Chuck groaned, but enjoyed the swipe anyway. "You're not really helping my case here."

Mark grinned and shook Blair's hand. "Chuck here has been trying to convince me you exist, so it's a pleasure to actually meet you. I'm Mark."

Blair laughed, finding herself humored by Mark's cadence and manner of carrying himself. He seemed pretty sure of himself, and she liked that. "Well, I really am his girlfriend. And while I can't entirely vouch for his sexuality, he's still mine. So hands off!" She wagged her finger jokingly.

An idea slowly began forming in that warped mind of hers as she looked him over. "How old are you, exactly?"

"…21," Mark replied defensively, as if that should be the most obvious thing in the world.

"No, **really**," Blair prodded. "I'm only 17, if it helps."

At this, Mark relaxed visibly and laughed at himself for being so silly. "I'm 17, too, then."

Blair glanced over at Chuck and exchanged a look, trying to see if they were on the same page. Off Chuck's nod of approval, Blair turned back to their new friend with a wide grin. "There's someone I'd love for you to meet…"

* * *

Serena and Dan sat on some random beach towels he managed to bribe off of a couple of twelve year-olds. They had spent the last hour laughing and joking around, easily breezing past the original awkwardness. It felt so good to be around him again that Serena was almost certain her mind had been made up for her.

Almost as if he had had the same thought at the exactly the same time, Dan scooted a little closer to Serena's spot on the sand and leaned in slowly for a kiss.

As their lips edged closer and closer together, Serena suddenly felt like she was having one of those moments where she was about to die and her entire life flashed before her eyes. But instead, this was everything that had ever gone wrong in her relationship with Dan flashing in front of her face. Just before their lips connected, she pulled away and looked directly down at the ground.

"What's wrong?" Dan asked worriedly. _So stupid! _He should have known better than too move in so quickly, before they even talked about the issues at hand. He had just hoped they would be able to start over with a clean slate. But he himself was terrible at forgetting past sins, so why should he expect **her **to be any better?

Serena sighed softly, unsure of exactly what she wanted to say. She was simply awful at expressing her thoughts without holding back—especially if those thoughts could be hurtful to someone else. "I just feel like you're never going to forgive me for my past. Like we're never going to be able to have a fair shot, because I'll always be this lost party girl and not your idea of perfection."

Dan took her hand in his, rubbing small circles with his thumb. "That's not true at all. I'm willing to accept you for who you are, with all the baggage that comes with it. I just need you to be _honest_ about who that person I'm accepting is." He gave her a meaningful look. "Who are you hiding in there?"

"That's just it, Dan," she complained, struggling to find the words to explain to him what she wished she had known all along. "Part of who I am is this… _person_ who clams up and runs away and hates confrontation. It's the way I was raised. I mean, look at my mom. She and I can barely have an honest conversation—I was taught to hold everything in and never let anyone see who you are. I can't just let go of that overnight."

Dan took his hand out of hers and ruffled his hair in frustration. He had to be understanding right now. He had to do as his dad told him. "I just don't get it…" _No, that is not being understanding. Go back, Humphrey. Go back! _"You're very open with Blair and Nate…and even Chuck, it seems," he pointed out.

"But they're my **family**, Dan. I've known them all my life, and they've been there for me countless times. And even then, it's taken me 17 years to truly open up to them, you know? They're just…patient with me. They wait for me to come to them, and then they're ready to listen." There it was. That's what she needed to hold onto. Leaning in towards him, just a little bit, she whispered, "If you want that from me—if you want a full and honest relationship—you're going to have to be patient, too."

His heart sank. "I really don't think I can wait 17 years, Serena."

She fought back the tears that wanted so desperately to leak out of her eyes. "Then I guess we just weren't meant to be…"

She looked away for a moment, observing the calm waves and taking in the moonlight's reflection in the water. "Can we still be friends, at least?" She asked, facing him once more.

He gave her a split-second look of _Oh, God_, and she amended her statement. "I mean, the kind of friends who pass each other on the street and stop and talk. More like close acquaintances."

He broke into a sad smile. "Of course we can be that."

"I really love you, Dan," she said, very simply, as a tiny tear rolled out of the corner of her eye.

He instinctively wiped it away, and reached over to give her a one-armed hug. "I love you, too. You know a part of me always will."

They sat in silence for a few moments, listening to the waves crash gently on the rocks. When he had regained his voice, Dan spoke up. "Nate's a great guy. He's going to take good care of you."

Serena smiled genuinely for the first time since the beginning of 'the talk.' "I know," she replied, feeling a certain warmth filling her soul as she thought about how Nate would react. She knew he would be there for her no matter what, but maybe now she could be there for him, too.

* * *

Chuck entered Eric's room and shook his head in disappointment upon seeing what the boy was wearing. A t-shirt and ripped jeans? This was _so _not okay. "Really, Brother?" He asked in disbelief. "You're going to wear…that?"

Eric shrugged. "I mean, I'm just going to be hanging around by the beach. No big deal, right?" Allowing himself a teensy bit of melodrama, he added, "It's not like there's anyone to care what I'm wearing."

"Au contraire, Mini-Me," Chuck chided, grinning wickedly. "You have a date tonight, and I want you to make a good impression. I'm going to dress you, and if you protest, I will hold you down while **Blair** dresses you."

"Like a blind date or something?" Eric furrowed his brows.

"Not blind," Chuck corrected. "I showed him your picture."

He immediately jumped away from his stepbrother, feeling quite defensive. "I'm not some kind of charity case, Chuck! I don't need my fake older brother picking up dudes for me."

Chuck acted stung by the 'fake' insult, but he knew better than to really be offended. When in crisis, he and those he had groomed to be like himself were forced to lash out—it was the only was to persevere and keep one's dignity intact. "As your older brother—and yes, I know, by marriage only…"

Eric made a face of repentance and allowed Chuck to continue.

"I must admit that your taste in men worries me. It is my duty to ensure that you find a suitable mate, so I want you to try out my option first. Just to see how you feel about dating a guy who isn't so scared of who he is that he has to date your best _girl_ friend just to remain in the closet."

Eric winced at the reminder, but it was unfortunately true. His previous relationship left a lot to be desired—maybe he really had been looking in all the wrong places... One date with a cute guy (because Chuck would never give him an ugly one, he knew that much) couldn't hurt.

"PS," Chuck inquired with a glint of that socially destructive malice in his eyes. "How _are_ you and Little Jenny Humphrey doing since the Great Outing of 2008?"

"She sent me a text saying she was sorry about two weeks ago. I haven't responded, but I know I'm going to forgive her as soon as I see her… So I'm trying to avoid it until school starts." Eric sighed at his own lameness. "I'm just too damn nice."

Chuck playfully messed up his hair. "And that's what I like about you. It gives me a foil to work off of. If you want, I can completely ruin her reputation even wore that it already is. Ensure she can never climb back on top of the ladder. Or get anywhere near the ladder, for that matter."

Eric laughed, grateful for Chuck's warped notions of brotherly love. "No, thanks. I think Blair's done enough damage for the both of you."

* * *

Serena returned to Nate's room to find him in the exact same spot where she had left him. She refused to believe he had just been sitting there, waiting for her, but it made him even more endearing nonetheless.

She sat down next to him and ran her fingers through his hair. "Hey," she whispered in his ear.

"Hey…" He was startled by her presence, but his voice only indicated contentment at her return. His eyes questioned her on how it went, but his mouth did not speak the words. He didn't want to pressure her. He would _never_ pressure her.

"It's over," she informed him, with a great deal of conviction in her voice. She was surprised how sure of herself she sounded—how sure she actually **was**. "_I'm_ over it," she clarified.

She cupped his face in her hands ad leaned in to kiss him, but this time, _he_ was the one who pulled away. "Serena… I know you."

She sat back against the couch, hurt by his words. Did he think she was lying to him, or even worse, to herself?

"You might be over Dan, or succeeding in getting over him," he explained, letting her know he believed what she was saying. "But I'm turning out to be a bit selfish."

She looked at him questioningly, almost ready to burst out laughing. Since when was Nate **selfish**? 4/5ths of all his problems stemmed from the fact that he wasn't nearly selfish _enough_.

"When you're with me, I want to be the only guy you could possibly be thinking of. I want us to do everything right, to really make it count."

She agreed wholeheartedly, and the fact that he had even thought that—let alone _said_ it—made her even surer that her feelings were not leading her astray. She nodded and gave him a small smile, and a silent moment of mutual understanding passed between them two lifelong friends.

Then he closed the distance separating them and finished the kiss she had tried to start just a few minutes earlier. "Just to make sure you know there's more what that came from," he grinned. "When you're ready, of course."

He stroked her cheek, then walked out of the room, leaving Serena to contemplate the events of the day. She hugged a pillow to her chest and couldn't help but smile as widely as her face could manage.

She would definitely be ready in 2 weeks, max.

**.:THE END:.**


End file.
